The Minority in Parliament is demanding the government to submit before the Legislature, its lithium agreement with Barari DV to give it a legal status.
According to the caucus, the deal as it stands is illegal and would be scrapped by the next NDC government until Parliament has approved it.
The Ranking Member on the Mines and Energy Committee, John Abdulai Jinapor, addressing the media in Parliament Thursday, December 7, 2023, indicated that “Article 268 of the 1992 constitution is explicit and it states that “any transaction including but not limited to the application for a license to exploit a natural resource requires prior parliamentary approval.”
The lawmaker indicated that based on what is provided in the constitution, “I want to make it loud and clear, succinct and explicit that the agreement between the government of Ghana and Barari DV should be laid before Parliament without delay.”
He assured the citizenry of the Minority’s quest to safeguard the interest of Ghanaians as far as the lithium agreement is concerned.
The MP assured of the proper engagements with the relevant stakeholders in the industry before the deal would be approved by the House in the interest of the nation.
“And let me assure the people of Ghana that the Minority will not let you down, we’ll scrutinise the agreement, we’ll not allow this agreement to be rushed through, we’ll seek the guidance, the involvement of Civil Society, we’ll speak to important personalities including former Chief Justice, Justice Sophia Akuffo who has been vocal on this lithium agreement.
The new order lithium. Lithium is more profitable than gold, diamond and the world order is moving to this great mineral and so the Minority would insist that Ghana benefits from this resource and that the terms and agreements, if they are not in the interest of Ghana, the Minority will kick against that,” he assured.
Background
Ghana has entered into its foremost agreement with Atlantic Lithium to mine lithium, a key ingredient for electric vehicles (EVs), at Ewoyaa in the Central region.
The deal includes a 10 per cent royalty and 13 per cent free carried interest by the state, compared with the existing five per cent and 10 per cent, respectively, for other mining agreements.
In the deal signed earlier in October, the Australia-based miner is further required to pay one per cent of its revenue into a community development fund to help uplift the mining area.
Through the planned investment by the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) in Atlantic Lithium, the government has secured an additional six per cent interest in the Ewoyaa Project, bringing its total holding to 19 per cent.
“The grant of the mining lease has, therefore, not only served as a gateway for Ghana to establish a long and successful lithium industry, but also for further foreign investment,” the former Senior Consultant to the United Nations Centre for Transformational Cooperation said.
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