The figure was realised from a targeted GH¢5.7 billion owed the power distribution company by individuals and corporate bodies in unpaid bills as at the beginning of the exercise on March 20, this year.

Meanwhile, the company has earmarked the last week of every month for revenue mobilisation in an effort to retrieve the remaining GH¢2.6 billion.

However, about GH¢1.5 billion of the unretrieved debts which were owed by collapsed companies and postpaid users affected by either demolition exercises or floods had been considered as bad debt by the company.

Homes and other properties of the defaulting individual customers were also either non-existent or could not be traced.

According to the Managing Director of ECG, Samuel Dubik Mahama, who disclosed this at a news conference in Accra yesterday, over 200 of the collapsed firms owed the company GH¢780 million, while that of postpaid users amounted to GH¢750 million.

He said that the company would use every legal means possible to retrieve the debts, including seeking help from the receiver of the collapsed firms.

Exercise     

Mr Mahama described the debt recovery exercise which started from March 20, 2023 - April 20, 2023 as successful.

“In the last week of every month, we will also undertake an exercise to identify customers who have not been captured in our books and include them for efficient revenue collection,” he added.

The MD also said that the revenue assurance unit of the company would ensure that bills were issued promptly for postpaid customers, adding that they were also designing a bill system that would check the reading of prepaid meters to tackle illegalities and losses.

Meter shortages

To address the issue of meter shortages, he said the company had introduced a loss reduction programme which had already started serving customers in the Accra East District.

“And so meters are now available and those who applied for them are getting served, but it is not moving fast enough because we are dealing with only local manufacturers.

“I will, therefore, like to inform customers that have applied for meters to visit the offices of ECG immediately for proper reconciliation,” Mr Mahama said.

He, however, said the company would soon start a flat rate service to bill consumers without meters.

Source: www.graphic.com.gh