Michael Edem Akafia, President, Ghana Chamber of Mines
Mining companies repatriated over US$4.2 billion to Ghana in 2023. This represents a little over 1.4% of the value of repatriation done in 2022.
This is according to the 2023 mining report by the Ghana Chamber of Mines.
A total of $2.7 billion was channeled through local banks, this was marginally lower than the value of the same transaction in 2022; $2.73 billion.
In 2022, about $1.41 billion was transferred through the central bank with 2023 recording a slight increase to $1.5 billion dollars.
“On the whole, the Chamber’s producing member companies repatriated US$4.2 billion into the country through commercial banks and the Bank of Ghana in 2023.”
Relative to their realized mineral revenue of US$5.9 billion in 2023, the repatriated funds of the Chamber’s producing member companies translate into 71.3% of their forex earnings.
This the chamber describes as “a marginal reduction from the previous year’s outturn of 73%.”
In 2023, the producing member companies sold $716.97 million to the Bank of Ghana under the forex purchase initiative. This arrangement gives it the first right to purchase any forex above the MSR to be offloaded onto the forex market by mining firms.
Also the volume of gold sold to the central bank under the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP) improved from 93,799 ounces in 2022 to 447,492 ounces in 2023, representing a growth rate of 377.1 per cent.
Also, data from the Bank of Ghana shows that receipts from the export of minerals improved from US$6.8 billion in 2022 to US$7.8 billion in 2023.
“The 15 per cent growth in mineral revenue was ascribed to the increase in proceeds from the export of all minerals, except manganese”
Mineral production outlook for 2024
Ghana’s mineral sector is expected to record broad-based growth in the production and exports of the four traditional minerals. The production of gold is projected to range between 4.3 million ounces and 4.5 million ounces in 2024.
The report continues to add that it expects new productions by some members of the chamber to boost production.
“Fresh production from Newmont’s Ahafo North project and Cardinal Resource’s Namdini Gold Mine will supplement the planned production of the existing producing member companies’ mines, which will increase the attributable production of the Chamber to a range of 3.1 million ounces to 3.3 million ounces in 2024.”
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