Ranking Member on Parliament’s Mines and Energy Committee, John Abdulai Jinapor, has indicated that the next NDC government will cancel all mineral agreements that have not had proper approval from Parliament until the right thing is done.
His comment comes on the back of Ghana’s lithium mining agreement with Barari DV for the mining of the mineral at Ewoyaa in the Central region. He says the agreement which has not been sent to Parliament is illegal and has asked that it be brought before the House for approval.
Speaking to the media in Parliament Thursday, December 7, 2023, Mr. Jinapor said the deal must be brought before Parliament before works on the grounds must commence.
“Let me reemphasise that we demand that the Akufo-Addo led government tables this agreement before Parliament without delay,” he said.
“…And let me caution that a future NDC government on assumption of office, all mining licenses that have not met the necessary parliamentary approval, we will do the proper thing and ensure that they cease until they get the right approval from Parliament,” he cautioned.
The Yapei Kusawgu Member of Parliament also sent a word of caution to Barari DV not to commence mining of the lithium since its agreement has not been approved by Parliament.
“Article 268 of the 1992 constitution is explicit and it states that “any transaction including but not limited to the application for a licence to exploit a natural resource requires prior parliamentary approval.
“And let me also caution Berari that any attempt to commence mining without parliamentary approval will be illegal and I also want to caution officials of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources as well as the Minerals Commission that they have no authorisation to allow Barari to commence mining of lithium without parliamentary approval.
“We insist this agreement ought to be laid in Parliament without delay,” he reemphasised.
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.
