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Ghana is currently shedding load in the range of 90 to 300 megawatts on a daily basis as a result of a deficit in power generation. In a statement issued last Friday, the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) attributed the deficit in power generation to, among other causes, the Akosombo Dam recording the lowest water level in the history of the Volta Lake due to poor rainfall in 2013. It has, subsequently, appealed to the public to continue to exercise restraint about the perennial erratic power supply as the government continued to address the problem. It said the current load demand was 2,000 megawatts, while the actual projected demand had been 2,180 megawatts. The statement said the water level in the Akosombo Dam, as of November 28, 2014, was 249.29 feet, facilitating the operation of only four out of the six power generation units, resulting in the reduction ranging from 150 to 300 megawatts of power supply from the dam. It said another cause of the deficit in the national power supply was overage power generation units at the Kpong generation station which would require retrofitting to enhance its efficacy. �Presently, one of the four units has been taken out and is undergoing retrofitting, expected to be completed in May 2015, resulting in a shortage of 40 megawatts from the Kpong station,� it said. It said retrofitting would be done on all the four units in turns. Other causes of load-shedding The statement also cited inadequate gas supply from Nigeria as a major cause of the erratic power supply, adding that national power supply had a number of thermal generating units, �some of the units have dual fuel systems that can use both gas and light crude oil for generation, while others are solely fuelled on gas�. It noted that the daily supply of gas from Nigeria had been erratic with volumes far less than the contracted daily supply of 123 million standard cubic feet (scf). �One major problem is the fact that the volumes are not regular and sometimes swing from 116.17scf to 17.48 million scf without any prior notification to the Volta River Authority, causing a loss in supply between 50 megawatts and 410 megawatts,� it explained. The statement said even though the Bui Dam was rated 400 megawatts, it was essentially a peaking plant and not meant to be base�loaded. It said due to low levels of water in the Bui Dam, it was used sparingly, supplying about 200 megawatts during peak periods. Bui water level, as of November 28, 2014, was 177.98 feet. The Bui Dam is also used to supplement shortfalls and supply power for short periods during emergencies related to loss of supply from other power generators. Some government interventions The statement noted that gas supply from the Jubilee Fields had just arrived at the Aboadze gas plant and was being used by the VRA. Initial gas supplied was 27 million scf and is expected to be increased to 60 million, later to 90 million and eventually to 120 million scf. It said other intervention measures included the institution of various power generation projects currently underway to provide an additional 860 MW supply for the ever-growing demand nationally. The projects included the TICO steam project to be completed in January 2015, emergency barge to be completed by April 2015 and the Sunon Asogli expansion project to be completed in January 2016.