Laying Of Atlantic Lithium’s 15-year Mining Lease Blocked By Minority In Parliament
The Minority in Parliament has successfully obstructed the laying of the lithium mining agreement between the government of Ghana and Barari DV of Australia.
This intervention follows the government’s recent grant of a 15-year mining lease to Barari DV Ghana Limited, a subsidiary of Atlantic Lithium Limited, to commence lithium mining at Ewoyaa in the Mfantseman Municipality of the Central Region.
The lease includes enhanced terms designed to maximize national benefits, such as increased royalty rates, greater state and Ghanaian participation, and value addition to the mined mineral.
Despite these improvements, the Minority in Parliament, led by Deputy Minority Whip Ahmed Ibrahim, accused the Majority of attempting to clandestinely lay the agreement without adequate parliamentary attendance.
On a day marred by insufficient parliamentary attendance, the Minority claimed that their NPP colleagues had abandoned the House to follow the NPP Flagbearer Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia on his campaign trail.
The Minority warned that they would obstruct parliamentary business if the Majority’s attendance did not improve.
Deputy Minority Whip Ahmed Ibrahim highlighted the agreed-upon strategy to avoid controversial issues and criticized the Majority for trying to push through the lithium and bauxite agreements without sufficient numbers.
“We need men to work before we can proceed, you don’t have the numbers. We will not agree,” he stated emphatically.
Civil society organizations, including IMANI Africa, have expressed concerns about the agreement. Bright Simons, Honorary Vice President of IMANI Africa, challenged the claim by Lands and Natural Resources Minister Samuel Abu Jinapor that the royalty rate in the lithium deal is the highest in the country’s history.
Mr Simons argued that Ghana has enjoyed significantly higher rates in the past and suggested that the current terms might shortchange the nation.
The lithium deal stipulates an increase in the royalty rate to 10% from the standard 5% and raises the state’s free carried interest in the mining operation from 10% to 13%.
But Mr Simons noted that while these figures appear favorable in recent contexts, they are not particularly generous when considering Ghana’s historical mining agreements, where participation rates were as high as 55% in the 1970s.
The blocking of the agreement by the Minority in Parliament has intensified the debate over the terms and benefits of the lithium mining lease, spotlighting broader concerns about transparency and optimal national benefit in Ghana’s mining sector.
