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Newmont looks to invest about $1b in new Ghana mine

Page last updated at Friday, December 11, 2009 11:11 AM // Leave Your Comment

miningOne of the world’s largest gold mining companies and America’s largest gold producer, Newmont Mining Corporation is contemplating the development of a second mine in Ghana estimated to cost between $700 million to $1 billion, reports quoting its Regional Senior Vice President for Africa, Jeff Huspeni have said.

The mine to be developed is situated in Akyem in the Eastern region of Ghana.

The Bloomberg news service citing information on Newmont’s website said the Akyem mine has proven and probable gold reserves of 7.66 million ounces of ore.

Newmont, the report says is looking for reliable electricity supply for the mine.

According to Huspeni, chronic electricity supply shortages in 2006 and 2007 hindered the operations of mining companies in Ghana. He indicated that four companies operating in the country, including Newmont, together purchased an 80-megawatt power generator in 2007 to overcome the shortages.

Newmont began operations in Ghana in 2006 with its Ahafo mine in the northwest Brong Ahafo region. Ahafo’s output rose 15 percent in 2008 to 524,000 ounces, the Ghana Chamber of Mines said in February.

In the last two decades, more than US$5 billion have been devoted to new mining projects in Ghana, according to Dr. R. Anthony Hodge, the President of the International Council on Mining and Metals.

Dr. Hodge who is a leading authority on sustainable development in mining, said this in an article published on the online version of the Sunday Monitor, a Ugandan publication in January 2009. He argued that “during that time, the national poverty rate has fallen 12 percent.”

Gold is Ghana’s major foreign exchange earner. According to the Bank of Ghana Gold exports for 2009 at the end of October amounted to US$ 2.1 billion compared with US$1.9 billion for the corresponding period of 2008, an annual growth of 6.3 percent.

And according to the Ghana Chamber of Mines, mining companies paid over GH¢179 million to government in 2008, representing more than 14 per cent of the country’s total internal revenue collection. Mining companies also paid about GH¢73 million representing three per cent of mineral revenue as taxes, levies and duties on the product to government as well as margins to the oil marketing companies.

Ghana is base to some of the world’s leading gold producers like Gold Fields, AngloGold Ashanti and Newmont Gold.

By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi

Newmont began operations in Ghana in 2006 with its Ahafo mine in the northwest Brong Ahafo region. Ahafo’s output rose 15 percent in 2008 to 524,000 ounces, the Ghana Chamber of Mines said in February.



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