The Bono Regional Office of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has held its 2026 mid-year review meeting with the management of regulated utility service providers in the Bono and Ahafo regions to assess their operational performance and discuss strategies to improve service delivery during the second half of the year.
The meeting provided a platform for the Commission to receive updates on the operational activities of the Ghana Water Limited (GWL) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo), review their achievements for the first six months of the year, and deliberate on challenges affecting efficient utility service delivery.
Ghana water
Presenting GWL’s performance, the Regional Chief Manager, Mr. Theophilus Tawiah Collins, disclosed that the company achieved an impressive 97 percent revenue collection rate during the period under review.
He said water production at the Abesim Water Treatment Plant had returned to normal following the stabilization of turbidity levels in the Tano River, the plant’s primary water source. According to him, the improvement has enabled the company to produce adequate volumes of water to meet customer demand while continuing supply rationing in distressed areas to bridge service gaps.
Mr. Tawiah Collins noted that GWL currently operates in five districts within the Bono Region and has digitalized several customer services, including new service connection applications, reporting of burst pipes and lodging of complaints.
He further revealed that the company replaced 485 faulty customer meters at a cost of GH¢1,543,307.65 to improve metering accuracy and revenue assurance.
Customer engagement
As part of efforts to strengthen customer engagement, GWL has introduced the Low Income Customer Support Department (LICSD), an initiative designed to improve service delivery in low-income urban communities. Through the programme, assembly members, opinion leaders, youth groups, and women collaborate with the company to promote access to safe and affordable water. About 600 consumers in the region have already benefited from the initiative.
Despite the gains, Mr. Tawiah Collins appealed to the PURC to support efforts to revive the Sunyani Water Expansion Project to improve water supply within the municipality.
He also called for closer collaboration with road contractors and other construction firms to minimize damage to water pipelines during construction works, which often disrupts water supply and imposes additional repair costs on the company.
NEDCo
For its part, NEDCo reported a strong financial and operational performance during the first half of the year.
Delivering the presentation, the Customer Service Officer, Hajia Amiratu, said the company exceeded its revenue target of GH¢30 million by mobilizing GH¢37 million, while achieving a revenue collection rate of 96.65 percent.
She disclosed that NEDCo conducted 95 community engagement programmes to educate electricity consumers and completed more than 5,000 new service connections during the period.
SHEP
The company also captured 2,036 Self-Help Electrification Programme (SHEP) customers into its system, while applications for new service connections can now be submitted online through the NEDCo portal.
According to Hajia Amiratu, NEDCo replaced 9,317 faulty electricity meters, installed 33 new transformers at a cost of GH¢4,770,358.98, upgraded 15 transformers at a cost of GH¢120,600, and completed the upgrade of a 10MVA transformer to a 20MVA transformer at the Berekum Primary Substation to improve power supply reliability.
She, however, appealed to the Commission to review the current five-day timeline for processing new service connections, explaining that the large volume of daily applications makes the target difficult to achieve. She also called for intensified public education against illegal electricity connections to reduce commercial losses and advocated an increase in the cost of separate electricity meters.
Commendation
In his remarks, the Bono Regional Manager of the PURC, Mr. Patrick Antwi, commended both utility companies for their commendable performance during the first half of the year.
He encouraged the utilities to sustain their hard work, address the operational challenges identified, and place greater emphasis on customer service to ensure higher consumer satisfaction across the Bono and Ahafo regions.
