TAKORADI GOLD Ghana Limited (TGGL), a Ghanaian-owned large-scale gold mining company, has secured permission from regulators to begin operations.
The company is expected to pay about $535 million in corporate taxes to the state over a period of 10 years.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company, David Anthony Nicol-Sey, who disclosed this, said the company would also pay a total of about $39 million in mineral royalties over the same period.
“Our projection is to treat about 500 tonnes of materials a day for 10 years. Per our feasibility studies, this will translate into paying $3 million of mineral royalties per annum, as well as $53.5 million in corporate taxes every year,” he disclosed.
Court case
In 2015, TGGL sued the Minerals Commission at the Tarkwa High Court for refusing to renew its prospecting licence after meeting all the requirements set forth by the commission.
The commission had asserted that the company had not upgraded its activities in the area after 21 years of exploration. The commission further cited the slow pace of work as indicative of the fact that TGGL lacked the financial and technical capacity to embark on a detailed mineral exploration.
Ruling
The Tarkwa High Court, presided over by Justice K.A. Ofori-Atta, ruled in 2017 that the Minerals Commission erred in its judgment and caused the licence of the Takoradi Gold Company Limited to be renewed.
The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources subsequently granted a 15-year mining lease to the company.
The mining lease was in respect of a 13.85 square kilometres concession at Kutukrom dated January 13, 2020 and signified the beginning of the development of an underground mine in the Kutukrom area of Prestea in the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality, Western Region.
According to the lease letter, the company warranted that it had the wherewithal in terms of finance, technical, and human resources to undertake efficient mining operations.
“The government hereby grants to the company mining rights to all that piece of land described in the schedule hereto for 15 years from the date of this mining lease. The term may be renewed from time to time in accordance with the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703),” the letter stated.
Mine Development
The CEO revealed that plans were already afoot to develop the mine infrastructure needed for the effective running of the mine. He said, currently, the company had renovated an underground mine, and was building a tailings treatment plant that could house tailings for over 50 years.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi