President John Dramani Mahama has commended the Volta River Authority (VRA) for its rapid and effective response to the recent fire incident at the Akosombo control room, describing the situation as a chance to upgrade the ageing facility.
During a visit to Akosombo on April 30 to assess the damage and ongoing restoration works, the President expressed sympathy over the incident, which affected operations and was felt across the country, but praised engineers and technical staff for quickly restoring part of the plant’s power generation.
“We heard about the sad event, the fire outbreak in your control room, and of course, Ghanaians have felt the impact,” he said, adding that the response from VRA demonstrated strong technical capacity.
He noted that he was not surprised by the speed of recovery, commending the institution’s skilled workforce.
“I’m not surprised because VRA has some of the best human resources you can get anywhere,” he stated.
Describing the fire as unfortunate but revealing, the President said the incident highlights the need to modernise the facility, which has been in operation since 1964.
“This is an act of God because who would have expected that a control room that has been there since 1964 would experience this kind of fire?” he said.
He added that the setback presents an opportunity for long-term improvement and infrastructure renewal.
“Adversity is an opportunity. Now that this has happened, it allows us to replace it with a more modern control room that will serve this plant for generations to come,” he noted.
Mr Mahama also disclosed that restoration efforts are progressing steadily, with four turbines already back in operation and work ongoing to restore the remaining units.
“I have been briefed that four of the turbines are back on, and work is ongoing to bring the remaining two back online,” he said.
He further praised staff of the VRA and partner agencies for their efforts and encouraged them to maintain momentum until full restoration is achieved.
“VRA will continue to be one of the foremost institutions, together with the Ghana Grid Company, and government will continue to support you,” he assured.
