Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Minister of Energy and Petroleum, has revealed that government will connect over 5,315 rural communities to electricity by the end of December 2016.

This, according to him, would increase the access rate from 72 percent to over 93 percent, thereby achieving universal access ahead of the United Nation’s stated world target of 2013.

Mr. Armah-Kofi Buah, who made this known at a press conference in Accra, said government intends to increase generation capacity to 5,000 megawatts through a number of strategies.

The strategies, he said, include the provision of short to medium-term annual generation road maps with specific planned projects and ensuring that the VRA effectively delivers its mandate of ensuring generation sufficiently and reliably, among others.

Armah-Kofi Buah said the country, which was on course with its electricity generation roadmap, brought on stream 267 megawatts of additional installed capacity by the close of May 2013.

This, he said, comprised 132 megawatts from the Takoradi Three Thermal Plant, 133 megawatts from one unit of the Bui Dam and two megawatts from the solar plant in Navrongo.

“By the close of 2013, we would have added 534 megawatts when the remaining two units of Bui Dam come on stream bringing the total installed capacity to 2,845.5 megawatts.

“In 2014, we will add 342 megawatts with the completion of the 220-megawatt Kpone thermal power plant; 110 megawatts Takoradi two expansion project and another 12 megawatts solar plant.

“This will bring the total generation to 3,187.5 megawatts,” Armah-Kofi Buah said.

He added that 1,060 megawatts of power is expected from four planned projects in 2015, which would increase total generation to 4,247.5 megawatts.

Mt Armah-Kofi Buah said by 2016, 1,711.5 megawatts would be added through additional seven planned projects, thereby bringing the aggregate generation capacity to 5,958.5 megawatts.

He said this year alone, a total of 177 solar facilities had been distributed to schools in remote areas, clinics and security outposts.

This sums up to 2,405 solar systems installed in remote public facilities and since 2009 about 1,742 households have also been supported to acquire solar systems with loans and grants through some rural Banks, Armah-Kofi Buah said.

He disclosed that the supply of gas would resume following the completion of repair work on the West African Gas Pipelines. According to the Minister, gas had already been released from Nigeria into the pipes and in some few days Ghana would receive adequate gas to feed electric energy generating plants.

“Since last August, we have all had to endure a very excruciating load-shedding exercise as a result of the damage caused to the West African Gas Pipeline. I am happy to report that the repair works and testing on the pipeline have been completed and we expect the operators to resume the supply of gas in the coming days,” Armah-Kofi Buah said.

He said as part of the ministry’s commitment to promote the use of LPG, the Ministry had procured 5,000 cylinders with cook stoves for distribution on pilot basis.

The ministry considers this as a priority project and would soon roll out a mass scale distribution of the cook stoves, Armah-Kofi Buah said.

This, he said, is expected to create employment for the youth.