The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) has decommissioned two of its studios as the state broadcaster struggles to cope with rising electricity bills.
Management revealed that the Corporation is compelled to pay approximately GH¢100,000 every week to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to prevent disconnection, even though parts of its operations have already been shifted onto solar power.
Currently, about 30 per cent of activities at the Adjangote Transmission Line and half of operations at the Takoradi branch are powered by solar energy.
During a visit by Parliament’s Committee on Communication and Information, Director-General of GBC, Professor Amin Alhassan, disclosed that efforts are underway to extend solar coverage to the Corporation’s Kanda branch in order to further reduce costs.
He noted that the financial strain has forced management to drastically ration studio use.
“So, even this particular studio, when the situation became critical, management decided it should only run from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.—four hours a day. The rest of the time, we keep it shut to avoid huge bills. Staff sometimes plead for access, but we overrule them. Broadcasting is capital-intensive, and equipment has traditionally been provided by government or external partners, such as the Japanese. Unfortunately, such support has dwindled in the past 20 years,” Prof. Alhassan explained.
He added that commercial operations cannot generate enough funds to purchase the multimillion-dollar equipment required, making external support vital.
“At the moment, the studio is off and will only be warmed up again tomorrow at dawn to run between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. The cost of running it for longer hours is simply unsustainable,” he said.