MiDA, Lands Commission sign agreement to provide land for ECG privatization

The Pokuase BSP, will be the largest in Ghana when completed

The Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) has commenced moves to secure lands to expand the operations of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) under Power Compact Two.

The authority has signed an agreement with the Lands Commission in Accra to provide 250,000 dollars for the smooth implementation of the compact.

Speaking to Citi Business News after a short ceremony, the Chief Executive Officer of MiDA, Martin Eson-Benjamin explained that the decision to sign the agreement is to avert difficulties in acquiring lands.

“As a first and major step, MiDA has collaborated with and received excellent support from the Lands Commission for the timely acquisition of 15.6 acres of Land in Pokuase through the statutory acquisition process for the construction of a Bulk Supply Point (BSP) Substation in Pokuase,” he announced.

Mr. Eson-Benjamin stated that the Pokuase BSP, will be the largest in Ghana when completed.

This he said will benefit the ECG and GRIDCo in the distribution and transmission networks to improve power supply to Pokuase, Achimota, Nsawam and Kwabenya all in the Greater Accra region.

Outlining some benefits, Mr. Eson-Benjamin pointed out that through the Lands Commission’s support, ECG has been granted formal right-of-entry to the Site in Pokuase to commence preparatory work towards the design and construction of the BSP.

He stated that, MiDA will continue to receive dedicated and timely assistance from the Lands Commission to support acquisition of land and payment of compensations in Accra and the NEDCo’s operational areas.

“Principal among what the Lands Commission will do for our Program will be: land documentation searches, statutory acquisition of land, land survey, mapping and development of Site plans, valuation of properties for payment of compensations, land title registration and acquisition of leases for acquired lands”.

On the part of the authority, Mr. Eson-Benjamin stated that MiDA will facilitate the work of the Lands Commission through the agreement by providing logistics and tools to ensure timely execution of tasks related to the Compact.

He listed that “This will include the provision of a vehicle, office equipment and computers and total station survey equipment as well as an amount of about one million cedis”.

Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission, Dr. Wilfred Anim-Odame explained that the commission is trying to avoid land disputes that may delay the programme.

The Power Compact II

Ghana and the Millennium Challenge Corporation of the US government signed the second Compact worth $498 million in October 2016.

The agreement is expected to bring a total of $1.4 billion received by the government to be injected into the country’s energy sector geared towards making the ECG more efficient.

Source: citifmonline.com