The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has brought together small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) and utility service providers in the Upper West Region to address service-related concerns and improve communication.
The initiative, under the Commission’s flagship “Time with SMEs” programme, brought together SMEs, including sachet and bottled water producers and hoteliers, as well as Ghana Water Limited (GWL) and Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) in the region.
It was also aimed at creating a common platform for utility service providers and SMEs to interact and resolve differences regarding service provision and usage.
As part of the engagement, PURC, GWL and NEDCo educated participants on their operations and addressed concerns raised by the SMEs regarding the use of their services.
The SMEs were also exposed to energy-efficiency measures, including the use of energy-efficient appliances and gadgets, to help reduce electricity consumption and maximise profits.
PURC also introduced participants to its Tariff Reckoner to enable them to estimate electricity consumption and calculate expected utility bills.
Speaking at the engagement in Wa, Mr Abdul-Wadud Ali, Upper West Regional Manager of PURC, said SMEs were important stakeholders because they depended heavily on utility services for their operations, necessitating the engagement.
“So, from now onwards what we want to do is to come out with a platform where we would have all these people on one particular platform.
“PURC will be part of it, Ghana Water will be part of it, and NEDCo will be part of it so that they would have the opportunity to address their issues as and when it comes,” he explained.
Mr Ali explained that PURC was mandated, among other things, to serve as an arbitrator between consumers and utility service providers.
He, however, encouraged consumers to first report complaints to their respective utility service providers before approaching PURC if they were dissatisfied with the resolution.
Mr Francis Yormesor, Wa Area Manager of NEDCo, said power outages in the area were caused by various factors, including technical hitches along the supply chain.
He said NEDCo operated a smart system that detected abnormalities and disconnected power from affected lines to protect lives and property.
He said the Company was committed to ensuring uninterrupted power supply and urged the public to desist from illegal connections, warning that offenders would be surcharged if apprehended.
In a presentation, Mr Petio Felix Amonteba, Upper West Regional GIS Manager of GWL, said the Company currently had about 15,206 active customers.
He said only 40 per cent of the water treatment plant’s 15,000-cubic-metre-per-day production capacity was being utilised due to low demand and encouraged more people and businesses to connect to the GWL network.
He assured consumers of the safety and quality of water supplied by the Company, saying water quality was monitored continuously at the treatment plant and through random sampling from customers’ homes.
GNA
