The Chief Executive officer (CEO) of the Minerals Commission, Martin Ayisi, has stressed that the Lithium deal between the government of the Republic of Ghana and Barari DV Ghana Limited is in the best interest of Ghanaians.
A statement signed and released by the CEO on Monday, December 4, 2023 stated that the government thoroughly evaluated all available options before agreeing to the deal.
The statement pointed out that the concerns raised by a few Ghanaians are borne out of pure misunderstanding of the deal itself and the fine details.
It said, the critics may have not read the contract agreement properly or haven’t read at all hence their confused position on the matter.
The Minerals Commission further stated that the deal is a well-considered decision in the country’s interest.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the mining lease was granted for 15 years to Barari, which is the subsidiary of Atlantic Lithium Limited, an Australian company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and also on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange. The lease covers an area of 42.63 Km2 in and around Ewoyaa in the Mfantseman Municipality of the Central Region.”
“The Commission notes in spite of the publication of the lease which is now widely available to the general public, it has become increasingly clear that the commentators have not read the agreement in its entirety and as result many of the concerns are based on assumptions that are inaccurate and assertions that are not supported by facts or any data.”
Key stakeholders, including the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) and the former Chief Justice, Sophia Akufo have described the contract as a colonial and Guggisberg-type deal.
The $250-million project located at Ewoyaa in the Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region, is expected to commence production by 2025.
The deal includes a 10 per cent royalty and 13 per cent free carried interest by the state, compared with the existing five per cent and 10 per cent, respectively, for other mining agreements.
In the deal, the Australia-based miner is further required to pay one per cent of its revenue into a community development fund to help uplift the mining area.
While some, including statesman and business executive Sir Sam Jonah, have lauded government for securing better fiscal terms for Ghana’s first lithium mine, others such as the IEA, remain skeptical about the agreement.
