Ghana's Gold Future Ignites Fierce Debate: Miners Demand Tax Relief and Jobs in Local Refining Push

Ghana is intensifying its drive to retain more value from its substantial gold resources by mandating local refining, a policy set to take full effect from September 1, 2026. This directive by the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) requires all Self-Financing Aggregators (SFAs) to refine gold doré within Ghana before export, making unrefined gold doré unapprovable for export. This move aligns with GoldBod’s mandate under the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025, and the government’s broader objective of ending raw mineral exports by 2030, aiming for LBMA accreditation for at least one local refinery.

However, this national endeavor is accompanied by significant concerns from the mining industry regarding the additional costs involved. Dr. Ken Ashigbey, Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, has repeatedly emphasized that local content and beneficiation initiatives, while beneficial, inherently come with financial implications. He strongly advocates for a collaborative approach, urging the government to “put its skin in the game” by reviewing existing taxes and levies that burden the sector.

A major area of concern highlighted by Dr. Ashigbey is the cost of power, which could render local refining commercially unviable. He suggests exploring policy decisions to grant refineries access to cheaper energy sources, specifically proposing preferential access to hydroelectricity. Additionally, he pointed to discussions under the 24-hour economy initiative to develop large solar plants, which could potentially reduce energy costs to around 3 to 4 cents per kilowatt-hour. Dr. Ashigbey also calls on private refinery operators to invest in technology to lower their operational costs. He noted that the mining sector, particularly large-scale operations, is already absorbing additional costs under programs like the Ghana Accelerated National Reserve Accumulation Programme (GANRAP), citing a 0.55 initial contribution against a 0.098 weighted average, indicating an existing subsidy to the government.

Conversely, the Association of Small-Scale Miners, through its Communication Director, Abdul Razak Alhassan, urges stakeholders to look beyond the immediate operational costs. While acknowledging the financial challenges, Mr. Alhassan emphasizes the wider economic and social benefits of local refining, such as job creation and a reduction in youth unemployment. He argues that the gold business already entails significant operational expenses for miners even before obtaining the ore. Therefore, requiring miners and aggregators to bear refining costs should not be deemed unreasonable, especially when considering the substantial national advantages it presents. The Association believes the employment opportunities generated by a robust domestic refining industry should be central to the policy debate.

GoldBod is not only implementing the mandatory refining directive but has also secured agreements, such as purchasing 30% of large-scale mining companies’ gold output in doré form for local refining. Furthermore, an arrangement with Gold Coast Refinery aims to process one metric tonne of gold weekly from the small-scale mining sector, reinforcing the commitment to deepening local value addition and creating jobs. Both industry representatives, Dr. Ashigbey and Mr. Alhassan, agree that local gold beneficiation is a positive development for Ghana. However, they stress that for the policy to be successfully and sustainably implemented, it requires genuine collaboration between the government and industry to collectively mitigate costs and maximize the overarching value to the nation.