On Thursday, August 8, 2024 the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, commissioned Ghana’s ultramodern gold refinery.
Named the Royal Ghana Gold Refinery, the Vice President indicated that the facility is to boost the country’s gold trade.
Commissioning the refinery, Dr. Bawumia said the Royal Ghana Gold Refinery will help in improving domestic revenue generation and reduce the stress of refining the product outside the country.
The commissioning was on the theme: Living the Dream of Value Addition in the Mineral Sector.
He said the refinery will offer more premium to gold exported from Ghana and is expected to create 80 to 120 direct jobs and another 500 indirect employment opportunities, boosting domestic tax revenue in the form of corporate taxes and enabling Ghana to refine gold to 24 carats, 99.99% purity, same quality as a good delivery bar (LBMA standard).
The Vice President noted that the achievement in the natural resources sector, specifically in gold, marks a significant milestone in Ghana’s journey towards economic transformation and industrialisation.
He added that the achievement is not just about the new facility but a testimony to the government’s commitment to adding value to the country’s natural resources, creating jobs and ensuring sustainable economic growth.
“The partnership between the Government of Ghana, through the Bank of Ghana and Rosy Royal Minerals Limited symbolises a vision for a prosperous future in the precious minerals industry.
“The state-of-the-art refinery being commissioned today is equipped with cutting-edge technology that meets international standards, significantly boosting our capacity to locally process gold and increase value addition prospects,” he stated.
FEED WITH GOLD
Dr. Bawumia said that the refinery, among other things, is required to be fed with gold that is marked as responsibly sourced.
He explained that responsibly sourced gold, is gold that is extracted legally, with due regard to the environment and devoid of conflict, human rights abuse and/or child labour.
Dr. Bawumia stated that the refinery has the capacity to refine four hundred kilogrammes of Dore gold per day and can, therefore, refine all the gold exported from Ghana at three hundred working days per year.
“This refinery has adequate capacity to meet the needs of Ghana and surrounding gold-producing countries. It is my expectation that our domestic mines will be fully on board and make this refinery their first point of call.
“With that kind of support, RGGL can obtain the LBMA good delivery list accreditation in three years, making it the second of such refineries in Africa.”
“Let us remember that this is a stepping stone towards setting Ghana’s gold on the global market. The Royal Ghana Gold Refinery symbolizes our determination to harness our mineral resources for the maximum benefit of all Ghanaians.
“Let us strive for excellence, innovation, and sustainable economic development while ensuring responsible extraction of our mineral resources,” he advised.
He assured that the government will work collaboratively with the Royal Ghana Gold Refinery to attain the LBMA certification and that the government will support the small-scale and large-scale miners across the country and will need their collaboration and trust in this once-in-a lifetime nation-building exercise.
“Government is pursuing this international certification, with efforts being led jointly by the Bank of Ghana and Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
“We will work collaboratively with the key stakeholders, particularly the large- and small-scale miners on how best we can work progressively to ensure that we refine our gold locally before export,” he said.
