Ghana Grid Company reports nationwide outage after transmission fault

Ghana experienced a major nationwide power outage on Thursday, August 20, 2026, following a fault on the Akosombo–Volta transmission line. The incident, which occurred around 4:30 a.m., triggered automatic protection mechanisms that shut down generating units at the Akosombo power facility and several thermal plants, affecting multiple regions including Greater Accra, Eastern, Northern, Central, and Ashanti.

The Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) reported that power was fully restored to all affected areas by 12:03 p.m. that same day. GRIDCo stated it is working to strengthen the reliability and resilience of the national transmission network.

The outage marks the second significant nationwide disruption in less than a month, following a similar event on July 29. This recurrence has drawn criticism from the Institute for Energy Security (IES), which is calling for a comprehensive technical investigation into potential issues such as aging equipment or inadequate maintenance. Additionally, Collins Adomako-Mensah, Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Energy Committee, has urged Parliament to summon GRIDCo and the Energy Minister to provide accountability and transparency regarding the stability of the national grid.