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John Jinapor, Member of Parliament for Yapei Kusawgu and former Deputy Minister of Energy, has sounded the alarm over a looming power crisis, commonly referred to as ‘dumsor,’ due to Ghana’s dangerously low fuel reserves.
Speaking after the inauguration of President John Dramani Mahama in Accra on January 7, 2024, Jinapor revealed that the country’s fuel stock is critically low, with just five hours of fuel supply remaining for power generation.
“I have bad news for you: the confirmation we are getting is that we have only five hours of fuel stock. If you look at heavy fuel oil and diesel fuel, we don’t have up to two days, and so in two days’ time, we are likely to run out of fuel,” Jinapor disclosed in an interview with Joy News.
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The MP laid the blame squarely on the outgoing administration, accusing them of failing to procure sufficient fuel supplies to sustain the nation’s power plants. He revealed that while assurances were given during the transition period that fuel parcels had been ordered, his checks indicated that the reserves could not even sustain two days of operations.
Jinapor explained that even if the new administration takes immediate action to procure fuel, the process would take approximately eight weeks for the fuel to arrive and undergo the necessary treatment for use. This delay, he warned, could result in an extended period of power outages across the country.
“This administration has not ordered any fuel as we speak, and it takes on average four weeks for the fuel to arrive and four weeks for the fuel to be treated. So, we are in a very serious situation,” Jinapor lamented.
He added that Ghana’s power plants require heavy fuel oil and diesel fuel for consistent operation, and the current stockpile is woefully inadequate to meet the demand.
The MP described the situation as a “major, major problem” and urged immediate action to avert a full-blown power crisis. He stressed that swift decisions and resource allocation are needed to mitigate the impact on citizens and businesses.
“We are in for real trouble,” Jinapor warned, highlighting the potential economic and social ramifications if the crisis is not resolved promptly.
