By Godwill Arthur-Mensah
Accra, Oct. 24, GNA – President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo would, on Thursday, November 21, 2024, perform a ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of a $450 million manganese refinery at Nsuta in the Western Region.
This is in furtherance of the Government’s resolve to make Ghana a hub for value addition to the country’s mineral resources.
Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, who announced this during a tour of the Ghana Manganese Company Limited at Nsuta, said preparations for the commencement of the project were far advanced.
He indicated that expectations were high among all the key stakeholders in the project and expressed optimism that it would kick-off before the end of the year.
Mr Jinapor commended the Management and staff of the company for their hard work and commitment towards ensuring that the project became a reality, because the economic relevance of the Company would soon become visible to the country’s economic growth.
The construction of the refinery was a key feature of President Akufo-Addo’s vision for adding value to the country’s natural resources, Mr Jinapor stated.
Mr Jinapor explained that the country was on the “verge of crossing the Rubicon,” relative to the processes for the construction of a refinery, describing the project as a ‘big deal’ and a ‘major breakthrough,’ which would mark a huge shift in harnessing the country’s resources for export, to value addition.
The move, he said, would create job opportunities for the youth and increase revenue streams for both the Manganese industry and the State.
“I am happy to report that we are currently at the final phase of beginning the construction of a refinery here in Nsuta. This will mean that products of this company, which have been shipped in their raw form for many years, will now have value addition in Ghana,” Mr Jinapor said.
Again, a lot of work had been done on this matter, with Teams from Ghana and China visiting both countries, adding that “At this stage, we are left with a few issues and getting parliamentary approval for the fiscal regime,” he stated.
He said this meant that the centuries of exporting raw manganese would be a thing of the past.
“We are now going to have value addition and retain the reasonably highest end of the value chain of the manganese industry here in Ghana. It will have positive implications on employment and have several linkages in terms of downstream industry and other economic benefits,” he noted.
Mr Jurgen Eijgendaal, the Managing Director of the Ghana Manganese Company Limited, lauded Mr Jinapor for showing keen interest in the project.
He stated that the company was ready to commence work on the construction of the refinery and undergo significant investments towards revamping it, to ensure that the plant got sufficient natural resources for processing.
GNA