Ghanaians have recently complained about paying more for electricity after the installation of new meters by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).

Both individuals and the business community have raised this concern, as they must double their expenditures to keep the lights on.

Touching on this while campaigning in the Asante Akim South constituency, the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, explained that the high electricity bills are a result of the importation of oil and gas for power generation.

According to him, using solar power to generate electricity is the solution to ending this high electricity cost problem.

The NPP flagbearer said he will establish solar farms in all districts to reduce the cost of electricity by 50 percent.

He stated that Ghana has enough sunlight to produce solar power for Ghanaians' use.

"Our electricity bill has increased, and I want to introduce a policy to take care of that. The bill has increased because we import oil and gas to produce electricity. I thus want us to use solar power to generate electricity," Dr. Bawumia stated.

"The technology exists already, and we have enough sunlight to produce solar power. I will create solar farms in all districts, which will reduce the cost of electricity by 50%," he added.

According to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), the meter replacement exercise is part of the company's Loss Reduction Programme (LRP), an initiative to facilitate the installation of smart meters and improve energy accounting.

The new meters aim to reduce system losses, provide more accurate readings, and eliminate billing discrepancies that plagued customers with the older models.

They are said to be equipped with anti-tampering mechanisms to help curb illegal connections and reduce losses due to electricity theft.

SA/MA

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