ECG Blames High Demand for Persistent Low Voltage in Hohoe, Plans Bulk Supply Point with GRIDCo

The utility says demand in the Volta Regional town has outstripped distribution capacity, with preliminary inspections for a new bulk supply point complete and construction expected to begin soon.

ACCRA, Nov. 11 — The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has attributed the persistent low voltage affecting residents of Hohoe in the Volta Region to pressure on the distribution network, with demand exceeding the system's current supply capacity.

The company says it is collaborating with the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) to establish a Bulk Supply Point (BSP) to strengthen electricity supply to Hohoe and other communities facing similar challenges. Preliminary inspections for the proposed facility have been completed, with construction expected to begin soon .

Speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on Tuesday, ECG's General Manager for External Communications, Dr Charles Nii Ayiku Ayiku, said the utility has plans to establish the BSP to relieve pressure on the affected areas.

"We even have plans of establishing a Bulk Supply Point, to relieve these other areas so they can join the BSP," he said .

Demand Outstrips Capacity

Asked directly whether the low voltage was caused by demand exceeding the system's capacity, Dr Ayiku acknowledged that the existing infrastructure was under considerable strain.

"Exactly, the current demand is very high," he said, agreeing that demand in the affected communities had outgrown the system's capacity to supply electricity .

He expressed confidence that the proposed facility would improve the situation, adding that low voltage could also result from inadequate transformer capacity .

Data Gaps Hinder Planning

Dr Ayiku further noted that effective planning for electricity infrastructure expansion was sometimes hampered by limited access to accurate development and population data, making it difficult for the company to anticipate growing demand in some communities .

The Hohoe situation is not isolated. In January 2026, ECG's Volta Regional Public Relations Officer, Eunice Tweneboah-Kodua, described low voltage in parts of the Volta and Oti regions as an upstream supply-chain problem requiring collaboration with other energy-sector partners .

Broader Grid Investment

The planned Hohoe BSP is part of a wider push to reinforce bulk supply infrastructure nationwide. More than 2,000 distribution transformers are being deployed across the country for ECG and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo), while Volta is advancing a 45-kilometre, 161 kV line from Asiekpe to Ho and a new 161/34.5 kV bulk supply point at Ho to lift voltage and capacity along the Asiekpe–Ho–Kadjebi corridor .

The government has also committed GH¢598 million to electrify 206 communities across all 18 municipal and district assemblies in the Volta Region within six months, under the Big Push programme .

Background

Low voltage complaints have become a recurring feature of Ghana's power distribution landscape. In August 2026, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) reported that a greater number of consumer complaints for the first half of the year related to persistent power outages, phase-offs, power fluctuations and low voltages, with field monitoring revealing overloaded transformers and network connectivity gaps .

ECG has acknowledged similar challenges in other regions, including Ashaiman, where residents reported low voltage rendering household appliances ineffective . The utility has been replacing ageing transformers and substations, with plans to replace more than 2,500 transformers across its operational areas .

For Hohoe residents, the timeline for relief remains uncertain. ECG has not provided a specific completion date for the proposed BSP, and the utility's ability to secure funding for bulk supply infrastructure has been a constraint elsewhere. In the Ashanti Region, ECG's Managing Director said in April that a third BSP for Kumasi remained in the planning phase because funding had not been secured .

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Dr Charles Nii Ayiku Ayiku is ECG's General Manager for External Communications.