By Jones Anlimah
The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has announced an upward adjustment in electricity and water tariffs for the third quarter of 2026.
The new tariffs, which take effect from July 1, 2026, will see electricity tariffs increase by 3.49 per cent, while water tariffs will go up by 0.85 per cent.
In a statement issued on June 22, 2026, the Commission said the adjustments were carried out under its quarterly tariff review mechanism aimed at maintaining the financial viability of utility service providers while ensuring efficient service delivery to consumers.
According to the PURC, the review took into account key variables including the Ghana Cedi-United States Dollar exchange rate, inflation, the weighted average cost of natural gas and the electricity generation mix.
The Commission noted that the projected exchange rate for the review period increased slightly from GH¢11.1931 to the US dollar in the second quarter to GH¢11.2228 in the third quarter. Inflation, however, declined from 4.17 per cent to 3.43 per cent, while the weighted average cost of gas reduced from US$8.0988 per MMBtu to US$7.9708 per MMBtu.
PURC explained that although some indicators recorded reductions, the combined impact of the applicable variables resulted in a marginal upward adjustment of tariffs.
Under the new tariff structure, residential electricity consumers on the lifeline tariff will pay GH¢89.0153 per kilowatt-hour block, up from GH¢86.9000, while several other residential, non-residential and special load tariff categories will also experience the 3.49 per cent increase. Service charges for electricity customers remain unchanged.
For water consumers, residential customers in the lifeline category will pay GH¢598.5381 per cubic metre, up from GH¢593.49. Water service charges across all customer categories remain unchanged.
The Commission said it will continue to monitor the operations of regulated utility service providers and hold them accountable to regulatory standards and benchmarks to ensure value for money and improved quality of service delivery.
PURC expressed appreciation to stakeholders for their support in implementing the quarterly tariff review process and assured the public of its commitment to addressing challenges in the utility sector. The decision will be published in the Gazette and made available on the Commission’s website.
