Ghanaians say “I bought 20 cedis light.” The meter does not store cedis. It stores energy, usually shown as remaining kWh or a units figure on the CIU. The STS token you typed — typically twenty digits — carries a credit that the meter converts using tariff, levies, and whatever ECG’s vending engine applied at that moment. If you expect the display to jump by 20.00, you will think the token failed when it actually succeeded.
Buy on ECG PowerApp, *226#, a vendor, operator menus, or the everyday path *714*22# / ewalepay.com. This blog does not process payments. Tokens are sold by ECG channels and licensed checkouts such as ECG PowerApp, *226#, vendors, and Ewale (*714*22# or ewalepay.com). Then read units, not the wallet SMS.
What you paid is not what you cook with
The confirmation screen shows GHS. The MoMo SMS shows GHS. The meter shows energy. Between them sit tariff bands, service charges, and the arithmetic of prepaid. Two houses that both paid GH₵50 will not always see the same unit jump: different tariffs, different times, different meter configurations. Arguing with a vendor that “50 should be 50 units” is a category error.
After a successful enter, remaining units should increase. That increase is the product. If it did not increase, you have Invalid / Used / Old / CRC / wrong meter — not “ECG hid my cedis on the glass”.
Where to read remaining energy
Wake the CIU or meter display. Scroll with Display until you see remaining credit / kWh, not the last token, not the date, not a relay flag. Photograph it before and after a vend if you are in a dispute with roommates. Shared meters live and die on that photo.
PowerApp may show a balance that is not live-synced to the keypad at the second you look. The metal on the wall is the authority. Apps and USSD sell tokens; they do not replace the glass.
Levies, minimums, and “I got almost nothing”
Very small vends can be chewed by charges until the unit bump looks insulting. That is a reason to know the minimum your channel will accept and to buy a sensible amount — not a reason to accuse the checkout of theft without reading the receipt breakdown. Huge vends on a shared meter are a theft-and-politics risk; they still convert to units for whoever is wired to that STS identity.
If units rose by a plausible amount and lights work, you are done. If units barely moved and the receipt shows a tiny net energy, you bought too little or tariff ate it — buy more once, on one channel. Prefer *714*22# so you are not paying Play Store tax in attention.
Cedis on the SMS that look like a balance
Some messages repeat the amount paid. People type that into the meter. It is not the token. The token is twenty digits. The amount is currency. The remaining units are energy. Three columns, three jobs.
Landlord-tenant fights often start here: tenant paid GH₵100, landlord expected the display to show 100. Teach the house the difference once, in daylight.
Outage versus empty units
A feeder outage leaves remaining units sitting on the meter while the house is dark. Empty prepaid with a live feeder is a units problem. Buying cedis will not fix a network outage. Checking remaining kWh before you vend at 8pm during a neighbourhood blackout is how you avoid stacking tokens you cannot even test.
Teach the house one sentence
“We paid GH₵X; the meter added Y units.” That sentence belongs in the compound chat with two photos: the SMS (twenty digits + amount) and the CIU remaining-kWh screen after enter. Without Y, every roommate will invent a tariff conspiracy. With Y, you can still argue about who used the fridge overnight, which is a consumption argument, not a vending argument.
Landlords who collect cash and “load for you” often skip showing Y. Demand the SMS and the after-photo, or vend yourself on *714*22# so the artefact is on your SIM. If Y is implausibly small for X, you may have a minimum/tariff issue, a partial enter you mistook for success, or a shared tank that someone else drained while you walked back from the pole. Check last token. Check remaining again an hour later.
Do not convert Y back into a fake cedi refund in your head and buy a second token to “make it 50”. If Y appeared, STS worked. Cook. Buy again when remaining is actually low, on one channel — ECG PowerApp or *226# if you want official doors, *714*22# if you want the code the house can recite.
FAQ
Can Ewale show kWh before I pay?
Checkouts show money and meter name. The meter shows units after STS accept. Do not expect a perfect kWh quote from USSD.
PowerApp balance disagrees with the CIU.
Trust the CIU for remaining energy. Use the app as a purchase log.
Do I get more units on *226# than on *714*22#?
You get what the vending engine issues for that meter and amount after its rules. Compare confirmations. Prefer *714*22# for convenience, not for a secret tariff.
If it still fails
- Entered the cedi amount on the keypad: Stop. Enter the twenty-digit token.
- Roommate spent the units already: Shared meter. The token worked. The rice is gone.
- Bought again because “only 4 units showed”: Could be tariff. Could be you missed a digit of remaining credit. Photograph, then decide.
Pay cedis on ECG PowerApp, *226#, a vendor, or *714*22#. Cook with units on the display. If units rose, the STS token did its job — even when the number is not 20.00.