The enquiry, to be conducted both within and outside the country, according to the Minister of Energy, Mr John Peter Amewu, would, among other things, establish who made false representations to the government to drive it into the agreement.

Mr Amewu told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the investigations would last for 30 days, by which time the full facts would be known and a definite decision taken.

He said a high-powered government delegation had been dispatched to Qatar to ascertain some facts relating to documentation on the agreement.

Last Tuesday night the government suspended the concession agreement with PDS Ghana Limited.

Mr Amewu assured the public that the distribution of power would not be affected.

He also indicated that the suspension would neither affect the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) compact nor lead to job losses, adding: “It is only a suspension.”

He urged Ghanaians to remain calm as the government was poised to get to the bottom of the issue.

Suspension

A statement signed and issued by the Minister of Information, Mr Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, said the decision followed the “detection of fundamental and material breaches of PDS’s obligation in the provision of Payment Securities (Demand Guarantees) for the transaction which were discovered upon further due diligence”.

“The demand guarantees were key prerequisites for the lease of assets on 1st March, 2019 to secure the assets that were transferred to the concessionaire,” it added.

It said the government had taken steps to ensure that distribution, billing and payment services were not uninterrupted and assured the public that the development would in no way interfere with the distribution of electricity services to customers.