Mass Action for Sustainable Development (MASDA), a non-profit organisation has called on government, especially Parliament, to re-examine the lithium mining lease agreement with Barari DV before ratification.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday in Accra, the Executive Director of MASDA, Atik Mohammed, said although Section 25 of Act 703 creates room for setting of royalty rates higher than 5%, it does not set a specific rates given the 10% royalty of total revenue that would be paid by the company to the government.
That, he explained, makes the 10% royalty rate to be paid to the government “discretionary and arbitrary”. According to him, Ghana is also likely to earn less royalty income in the future in the event that the prices of lithium increase.
His call comes in the wake of an agreement signed between Ghana and Barari DV on October 10, for the company to mine lithium in commercial quantities.
Though the contract is yet to be ratified by Parliament, many Ghanaians and individuals have expressed dissatisfaction with sections of the agreement.
He also called on government to broaden the conversation and make wider consultation with stakeholders before any lease is granted, given that green minerals especially lithium, will become substitutes for oil in the ‘not distant’ future, describing the entire lease agreement process as a rush.
“Lithium and other green minerals represent the future. This is because they are at the centre of the green transition. It is against this background that we find the mining lease agreement between government of Ghana and Barari DV Ghana Limited unacceptable and not fit for purpose.
“To this end, we are calling on our representatives in Parliament, both sides of the aisle not to ratify the agreement in its current form until the building blocks are laid. Parliament must demand broader engagements from the minister as a pre-condition before any lease is eventually granted,” he said.
He also asked the Minerals Commission to amend the Minerals and Mining Act (703), to reflect the peculiarities of the ‘new oil’ or have separate green minerals regulatory and fiscal regime before any mining lease for lithium is granted.
The Executive Director further suggested that as a pioneer agreement that would guide future or subsequent agreements, government desire for 13% should be secured in a watertight manner which required an explicit amendment of Section 43 of Act 703.
He stated that failure by government to do so will amount to negotiating a half-baked agreement which does not serve the interest of Ghanaians.
By Ebenezer K. Amponsah