The Volta River Authority (VRA) has successfully turned around the company’s fortunes after six years of recording losses, as it made profit of GH¢112.76million in 2021 – with management poised to keep up the momentum.
This is the second year running that the Authority, the country’s largest power producer, has made profit; having earned a net profit of GH¢156million in 2020.
Presenting last year’s performance to VRA stakeholders – including representatives from the Ministries of Energy and Finance, State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA), the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), Electricity Company of Ghana and the Select Committee on Mines and Energy of Parliament – at a stakeholder interface in Accra, its Board Chairman, Kofi Tutu Agyare, attributed the achievement to VRA’s Financial Recovery Programme (FRP) and a sustainability plan.
He noted that despite challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and other difficulties in the energy sector, these initiatives along with cost-reduction measures, technology and an aggressive export strategy, as well as the effective leadership of the board and the management team coupled with commitment of staff, have significantly ensured the strong position VRA finds itself in.
The stakeholders commended VRA for the significant turnaround in its operations, noting that efforts of the board, the chief executive, management and staff in transforming the company, are rare in the public sector.
“A state institution moving from a negative to positive deserves a standing ovation. VRA, you have done very well! You deserve applause,” Samuel Atta Akyea, Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Mines and Energy, said at the event.
Diversification and expansion
In a bid to diversify and expand its operations, the Authority increased its generation footprints with the coming onstream of the 13MWp Kaleo Solar PV Power Plant in the Upper West Region.
By 2025, VRA hopes to increase its renewable footprint to 200MW. Among the renewable projects soon to be rolled out are included a 60MW Bongo Solar Power project in the Upper East Region and a 75MW Wind Power Project at Anloga in the Volta Region.
Meanwhile, the Authority is also working with the Ministry of Energy to relocate the 250MW AMERI Plant from the VRA Aboadze Power Station to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region, and also rehabilitate its 132MW T3 Power Plant in Aboadze within the 2023 to 2024 time-frame.
Two of its simple cycle power plants in Tema and Kpone in Accra will also be converted into combined cycle plants for generation efficiency.
