ECG Launches Spot Billing and Franchising Project to Plug Revenue Leaks, Tackle Illegal Connections

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has launched a nationwide Spot Billing and Franchising Project aimed at strengthening revenue collection, improving billing accuracy and curbing illegal connections, as the state utility confronts persistent commercial losses that have long undermined the financial viability of Ghana's power sector.

The initiative, launched in Koforidua, the Eastern Regional capital, under the theme "Safeguarding Revenue, Powering Ghana," expands the role of traditional meter readers into performance-based franchise contractors responsible for a broader range of field operations, including bill delivery, monitoring prepaid meters, identifying faulty meters and illegal connections, supporting authorised disconnections and reconnections, and validating customer information .

Expanded Responsibilities, Digital Tools

Speaking at the launch, ECG Managing Director Julius Kwame Kpekpena said the franchise model was designed to bring the company's services closer to customers while making field operations more efficient, transparent and accountable. He noted that inaccurate or missed meter readings often lead to incorrect bills, while unattended faulty meters create inconvenience for customers and revenue losses for ECG. Illegal connections, he added, place an unfair burden on customers who pay honestly for the electricity they consume .

Some 1,500 franchise contractors have been trained and deployed across 92 districts, equipped with handheld devices and applications to perform their duties under ECG supervision . Contractors are required to read at least 1,000 meters each, with commercial management offices responsible for supervising their activities and verifying performance . The technology platform, including the ZEUS Commercial Management System developed with Polymorph Labs and Hubtel, supports electronic monitoring, photographic evidence and verification of authorised field personnel .

To facilitate field operations, ECG presented two Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles and 10 motorbikes to the contractors . Under Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) regulations, franchise officers are empowered to enforce debt collection, including disconnecting premises with bills unpaid beyond the 14-day settlement window . A strict zero-cash policy applies to all field activities: officers are barred from accepting cash or mobile money directly and must assist customers in processing payments through the ECG PowerApp or the *226# USSD short code .

Ambitious Targets Amid Sector Strains

The pilot phase of the project, conducted across six districts in the Eastern, Ashanti, Central and Volta regions, recorded a 21.3 percent improvement in meter-reading performance . ECG is now targeting an increase in revenue collection from approximately 86 percent to 98 percent, and a reduction in system losses from 26.88 percent to 21.5 percent by 2028 .

Those targets address a long-standing challenge. The IMF has noted that with a collection rate of roughly 86 percent in 2024, a significant fraction of electricity billed by ECG is not recovered, with non-payment by public sector entities accounting for a substantial share . Commercial losses from illegal connections, meter bypassing and billing errors compound the problem . Post-paid billing accounts for about 55 percent of ECG's revenue, making the accuracy and reliability of field operations critical to the utility's financial health .

Acting Deputy Executive Secretary of the Energy Commission, Dr Julius Abayateye, who read a speech on behalf of Energy Minister John Abdulai Jinapor, emphasised that every unit of electricity generated comes at a cost. "When electricity is consumed but not properly measured, billed or paid for, the resulting revenue shortfalls affect the entire electricity value chain," he said, limiting resources available for infrastructure maintenance, network expansion and investment needed to meet Ghana's growing demand .

Eastern Regional Minister Rita Akosua Adjei Awatey commended ECG for the initiative, describing it as a step toward improving efficiency and accountability. She urged customers to pay bills promptly and report illegal connections, while calling on contractors to work honestly and management to ensure effective supervision .

Background: A Sector Under Pressure

The franchising initiative comes amid broader efforts to stabilise Ghana's electricity sector. ECG's stock of arrears to the energy sector peaked at US2.8 billion by year-end on improved revenue collection and compliance with the Cash Waterfall Mechanism . The government has also signalled plans to bring private sector operators into ECG's metering and billing operations, with President John Mahama describing commercial and technical losses in the distribution system as having stood at 42 percent before the current administration took office .

For ECG management, the franchise project represents a bet that decentralising field accountability—and paying contractors based on verified work—can deliver measurable improvements in a system where the gap between electricity distributed and revenue collected has long been a drag on public finances and a burden on compliant consumers.

"We are changing the way ECG manages its relationship with customers in the field," Kpekpena said. "The franchise contractor is now expected not only to read meters, but also to support bill delivery, monitor prepayment meters, identify and report faulty meters and illegal connections, support authorised disconnections and reconnections, validate customer information, and generally serve as an important link between ECG and the customer" .