By Daniel Bampoe
In a stunning revelation that reverses earlier claims of theft and disappearance, the Ministry of Energy has disclosed that no containers belonging to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) have gone missing. Rather, a recent audit has retrieved 2,637 containers at Tema Port — more than double the 1,300 that were initially reported missing.
This development has cast doubt on the credibility of the committee that first flagged the disappearance and suggests that the Energy Minister, John Abdulai Jinapor, may have been misled.
Background
The container saga began in March 2025, when Minister Jinapor, following an official interaction with ECG management, was informed that 2,491 containers filled with essential electrical equipment, including cables, had remained uncleared at the Tema Port due to ECG’s inability to pay for clearance.
To verify this claim, the Minister instituted an investigative committee chaired by Professor Innocent Senyo Acquah, an Associate Professor of Procurement and Supply Chain Management at the University of Cape Coast.
The initial report from the committee sparked national concern.
It claimed that of the 2,491 containers ECG acknowledged, only 1,134 could be located at the port, leaving 1,357 containers unaccounted for.
This raised fears of a sophisticated syndicate involved in siphoning state resources, prompting the Minister to involve the National Security, Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), Customs, and the Ministry of Transport in a broader investigation.
The matter became so serious that 14 people, including 10 foreign nationals and four Ghanaians, were arrested in late March.
Audit Findings Contradict Initial Report
However, the tide has dramatically turned. In a media interview, Richmond Rockson, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Energy, revealed that a subsequent audit uncovered 2,637 containers at various locations within the port and associated terminals — almost double the number said to be missing.
According to Rockson, the breakdown of container locations is as follows:
860 containers at Meridian Port Services
1,237 containers at GPHA Terminals
272 containers evacuated by National Security
194 containers at Amaris Terminal
20 containers at ATLAS Manufacturing Terminal
As of April 30, 2025, there were still 2,583 containers classified as outstanding, many of which exceeded the standard 60-day clearance window and were listed under the Uncleared Cargo List (UCL).
