A marginal increase of 1.14 per cent in electricity tariffs across all consumer categories, effective October 1, 2025, has been announced by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC).

The Acting Executive Secretary, Shafic Suleman, confirmed what had been rumoured in the last week in an official statement that the adjustment was the outcome of its quarterly review mechanism.

This considers economic variables such as the cedi–dollar exchange rate, inflation, the generation mix, and fuel costs, particularly natural gas.

The Commission explained that the quarterly exercise is essential to “maintain the real value of tariffs” and safeguard the financial stability of utility providers so they can continue delivering reliable services.

For the review period, the PURC worked with a projected weighted average exchange rate of GH¢12.3715 to the dollar, factoring in an under-recovery of GH¢0.3980 per dollar from the third quarter.

It also adopted an annual average inflation rate of 12.43 per cent and a weighted average natural gas cost of US$7.7134 per MMBtu. The projected generation mix remains 28.8 per cent hydro and 71.2 per cent thermal.

The new rates mean lifeline residential consumers (0–30 kWh) will now pay 80.43 pesewas per unit, up from 79.53 pesewas, while consumers using more than 301 kWh will pay GH¢2.40 per unit, up from GH¢2.38.

Non-residential users in the 0–300 kWh band will now pay GH¢1.64 per unit, compared with the previous GH¢1.62. Industrial and special load customers will also see small upward changes.

Water tariffs, on the other hand, remain unchanged across residential, non-residential, commercial, industrial and institutional users. Residential customers consuming up to 5 m³ will continue paying GH¢5.28 per cubic metre, with producers of sachet and bottled water also maintaining current charges.