Manila Electric Co. is set to start its power distribution business in Ghana in West Africa.
The board of the Millennium Development Authority of Ghana said it would hand over the electricity distribution assets and operations of Electricity Company of Ghana Ltd. to Power Distribution Services Ltd., a consortium led by Manila Electric Co. on Wednesday.
“The board of directors and the ECG PSP [private sector participation] stakeholders anticipate a smooth transition, and count on the support and cooperation of all Ghanaians to ensure the success of PDS as the new electricity distribution operator in the Southern Distribution Zone of Ghana,” MiDA said.
MiDA assured the people of Ghana that it would continue to adhere to and uphold high standards of transparency throughout the process.
Aside from Meralco which has a 30-percent interest in PDS, other consortium members are Aenergia SA of Angola with 19 percent, Santa Baron Ventures Ghana with 13 percent, TG Energy Solution Ghana with 18 percent, GTS Engineering Ghana Ltd. with 10 percent and TBK Ghana Ltd with 10 percent.
Meralco officials announced in December that they were hoping to start managing and operating the electricity distribution business of ECG in West Africa by the first quarter.
Meralco president Oscar Reyes said earlier the company was still finalizing the agreements for the deal to take a 30-percent stake in the joint venture consortium that would operate the distribution business of EGC.
“We are working with MiDA and Electricity Company of Ghana for proper transfer,” Reyes said. Alena Mae S. Flores
Meralco was chosen as the preferred bidder to manage, operate and invest in the ECG privatization process last year.
Meralco senior vice president and head of customer retail services, corporate marketing and communications Al Panlilio said earlier the Ghana bid was for the equity ownership and management of the concession company to take over ECG.
ECG supplies 80 percent of the population of Ghana through three million accounts.
Meralco is the largest power distributor in the Philippines with more than six million customers in its franchise area. It also has a stake in a distribution utility in Nigeria, also in West Africa.
Meralco and partner Integrated Energy Distribution and Marketing Ltd. took over the operations of Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company Plc. and Yola Electricity Distribution Co. Plc. in November 2013.