The Executive Secretary of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), Dr. Ishmael Ackah, has noted that the upcoming 2024 ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulation Authority (ERERA) Forum will help enhance Ghana's performance in the electricity trade market.

Dr. Ackah mentioned investment in transmission and harmonization as the major challenges hindering Ghana from achieving better performance in the market.

Speaking during a press briefing ahead of the event, he indicated that Ghana is currently performing under 10% in the market. Thus, the forum will aid in developing a 'concrete framework' to address the existing issues and improve the country's performance.

"When it comes to West Africa, what we need is affordable and reliable electricity. The good thing is that it costs less to import electricity than to produce it. So why are we not exporting? There are a number of reasons, including investment in transmission, harmonization, and other factors," he said.

"For me, I will join the executive chairman of the energy commission in support of the forum for us to take stock. In terms of trading, we are doing less than 10% and that is not good enough. So we need to take stock and also assess the barriers in electricity trading in the sub-regions. The good thing is this forum will provide a concrete framework which we can approve and ensure that when we meet next year we will talk about more than 10%," he added.

Mr. Laurent Tossou, the chairman of ERERA, highlighted the role of the regulatory body and the significance of the forum.

"Our role is to harmonize policies for every country to ensure that everybody is ready to sell or buy electricity in the market within another country.

"We will use the forum to host all the representatives of all the countries in ECOWAS. We will use it to share the development of the market and also plan the activities for the next five years. Delegates will also express the issues in their countries so we can put in place a framework to decide the future of the market."

This will be the 9th edition of the ERERA Forum and the second time it will be hosted in Ghana. The two-day event is scheduled for July 24 and July 25, 2024.

Intending to ensure affordable and reliable electricity in West Africa, the theme for the forum is "Electricity Trade Security in ECOWAS Region: The Interplay Between National Policies and Free Market Principles."