Emmanuel Armah Kofi-Buah
The Minerals Commission has directed some international mining firms including Newmont, AngloGold Ashanti, and Zijin to shift mining operations to local contractors by December, 2026 or face sanctions.
Sources reveal that the three companies currently operate the mines with their own staff even though other firms have outsourced mining operations ahead of a revision of local ownership rules which required all miners to switch to contract mining.
Under the rules, DAILY GUIDE learnt that surface mining is expected to be undertaken by fully Ghanaian-owned firms, while underground mining should be carried out by companies with at least 50% Ghanaian ownership.
Information within government circles indicates that apart from Newmont, Zijin and AngloGold Ashanti’s smaller Iduapriem gold mine, almost all large mining firms operating in the country have already transitioned to contract mining.
According to Reuters reports on Wednesday, separate letters sent to the three companies in January and October, 2025 revealed that the Minerals Commission directed the mining firms to fully comply with the contract mining requirements by December 2026.
It said the companies however requested for extensions to enable them to fully comply with the directive.
Sources further indicated that although Anglogold Ashanti has not commented on the matter, Zijin mining unit in Ghana said it has been engaging with the Minerals Commission since November 2025 to comply with the local content rules.
This, it stated, include preparing tenders and technical frameworks for a shift to contract mining, while rolling out new technologies that require initial benchmarking before a full tender process.
But sources within government indicates that Newmont’s compliance was discussed during meetings this month in Accra between its global CEO, Natascha Viljoen, and the Minerals Commission after the company sought an extension.
A source within government revealed that Newmont, which operates the Ahafo North and South gold mines, requested to fully comply with the directive by 2027, citing additional regulatory and governance requirements it must satisfy as a listed company.
But regulators, reports indicates, rejected that request, citing examples of other listed miners, who had already complied with the directive
The government sources said the new rules are aimed at building capacity among Ghanaian mining service companies in order to retain more value in-country, citing the emergence of Ghanaian firms such as Rocksure and Engineers & Planners (E&P).
By Ebenezer Amponsah