By Anthony Adongo Apubeo, GNA
Talensi (U/E), March 30, GNA – All things being equal, by the last quarter of 2024, Cardinal Namdini Mining Ltd (CNML), a subsidiary of Shandong Gold, will pour its first gold in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region.
Construction of most of the various infrastructure/facilities to pave way for commercial gold mining in the area are completed while few others are at advanced stages of completion.
The mine will become one of the largest single stream gold mines in the West Africa Sub-region and the largest single stream mine in Ghana.
Mr Steve Ofori-Asamoah, the Project Manager, CNML, disclosed this when the Upper East Regional Security Council (REGSEC), led by Mr Stephen Yakubu, the Regional Minister, paid a working visit to the mines to ascertain progress of work.
Shandong Gold is one of the top 10 leading producers of gold globally, employing high level and ecologically friendly technologies in mining. Its mine in Ghana is the first in Africa.
The CNML project is an open-cast (surface) gold mine in the Talensi District with an initial life span of 15 years.
It is expected to generate about 150 million tonnes of ore, resulting in five million ounces of gold within the period of production.
The company is currently investing about 600 million dollars in the construction and resettlement phase of the project and all construction projects are expected to be completed before the beginning of the last quarter of 2024.
Apart from operational offices, CNML has a Permanent Camp (accommodation facility) with all the recreational facilities which could house over 328 staff.
The construction of the processing plant, the water abstraction and tailings storage facilities, 161Kv Power Transmission Line, segment ponds, road network and mechanical installation among others are all nearing completion.
A 25-kilometer access road from Balungu (off the Tamale-Bolgatanga Road) to its site, which has been opened to the public, connecting over 10 communities, is also completed.
Mr Ofori-Asamoah said key among the company’s operations was the attention paid to local content with about 90 per cent of its current manpower of 1,200 being Ghanaian nationals. 51 per cent of the number is from the project area.
“As a mine, Shandong Gold and Cardinal Namdini take pride in our corporate social responsibility to the people of Ghana,” he said.
“Our social investment in the project area is about GHC3.5 million in health, education, skills development, institutional capacity building, water and sanitation and public infrastructure maintenance. We also made some donations when the Appiatse incident happened”.
In 2022, the CNML spent over US$10 million to construct about 123 residential houses and public infrastructure, including schools and healthcare facilities, for the Biung and Accra Site resettled communities.
The Project Manager spoke about the company’s discussions with the Central Government to ensure the regional airport was built as part of national development contribution.
The Regional Minister, Mr Stephen Yakubu, lauded the efforts of Cardinal Namdini Mining for prioritising the safety of its people and the communities and paying particular attention to local content, which would help provide jobs for the people.
He advised the company to constantly engage the communities, particularly the landowners, to ensure that they were involved in the operations to ensure peace and cooperation.
GNA