The Minority in Parliament has asked the government to break down the $34 million it claims the relocation of the Ameri deal cost.
Edward Bawa, a member of the Parliament's Energy Committee, said that the administration estimated the relocation of the deal would cost the state $34 million.
This, according to him, came to light when the Mines and Energy committee met with a number of Agencies over the weekend.
Edward Bawa claims that the deal has to be scrapped since the economy is now in a dire situation.
In particular, given that the nation is having trouble paying its debt and paying its employees' salaries, "As a Minority, we demand the breakdown of this cost. In the best interests of every Ghanaian, such opaque deals must end since the energy industry is facing major difficulties, he said.
When the Minority sought information on the transaction during the meeting, the Bongo MP emphasised that "answers were not forthcoming."
The legislator asserts that "the business hired to move the plant is Mytilineous International Trading Company, the same company engaged in the novation and revision of the Ameri contract that nearly defrauded Ghanaians except for the vigilance of the Minority."
The government announced its choice to move the Ameri Plant from Aboadze to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region in March of last year in order to stabilise the national grid.
While presenting the 2021 Budget Statement in Parliament, the majority leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, noted that although the country had adequate power generation capacity in 2020, the decision to move the Ameri Plant and the completion of other power projects will help stabilise Ghana's power supply.
"Mr. Speaker, in 2020, the nation's generation capacity would have been sufficient to fulfil demand from residential, commercial, and industrial clients...
The Ameri Plant will move to Kumasi in 2021 to assist in stabilising the national grid.
Background
The Ghanaian government of John Mahama and Africa Middle East Resources Investment Group LLC (AMERI) inked the $510 million 300 MW AMERI power contract in 2015, when the nation was suffering from a severe power outage.
With the aid of the AMERI LLC, Ghana's power supply was to be strengthened, and a problem with the recurrence of "dumsor," or power outages, was to be resolved.
The transaction, according to the then-opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), was overvalued. This opinion was echoed by civil society organisations, IMANI Africa, and the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP).
Then, a news report from the Norwegian daily Verdens Gang said that some government officials in the John Mahama administration paid a middleman a stunning $150 million for little to no work completed.
The article sparked a firestorm of debate and gave the NPP, IMANI Africa, and CEP ammunition to criticise the transaction. a 17-member committee appointed by President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and headed by attorney Philip Addison recommended the government to evaluate the deal with AMERI, among other matters, to look into the specifics of the arrangement.
The notorious Novated and Amended AMERI contract started as a result of the committee headed by Philip Addison's suggestion to examine the agreement
The agreement reached Parliament via an Executive Order notwithstanding the protests.
The deal's acceptance by the Executive was viewed by critics as evidence that it had not undergone enough review by the Finance Ministry (for a value-for-money study) and the Attorney-General (for the legal implications of the new deal).
The pact was criticised as being worse than the previous agreement by civil society organisations, the Institute of Energy Studies (IES), ACEP, IMANI Africa, and the Minority National Democratic Congress (NDC).