The Ghana Chamber of Mines is calling for targeted tax and energy interventions to make local gold refining commercially viable as Ghana steps up efforts to retain more value from its gold resources.

Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber, Dr Ken Ashigbey, said the cost of power, taxes and other operational expenses could make local refining more expensive, requiring government and industry to work together to reduce the burden.

Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Wednesday, Dr Ashigbey said local value addition came with additional costs, but all stakeholders had a role to play in making the policy successful.

“But before I even get to the time scale, in terms of the issue about the cost, you know, and again, we should all realise the fact that you know, when you want to do this local content, it comes with some cost,” he said.

He said government must also review taxes and levies affecting the refining sector.

“But again, all of us need to chip in. The more we do in this country, and the more we all work together, government needs to put its skin in the game,” he added.

Dr Ashigbey said discussions were already underway on the taxes and levies associated with the refining drive.

“The issue, of course, is that the taxes and the levies that are on government would have to look at that, and I know that conversation is going on,” he said.

He also urged private refinery operators to invest in technology that could help lower their operating costs.

“The issues of these private sector people who own the refineries in terms of the technology that they need to put in to be able to ensure that they reduce their cost, it’s something that we need to do,” he said.

Chamber seeks cheaper power for refineries

Dr Ashigbey identified energy costs as another major challenge and said policy measures could be considered to give refineries access to cheaper sources of electricity, particularly hydroelectric power.

“The issues of even power, you know, currently the cost of power, so there might be some policy decisions that would have to be taken,” he said.

He specifically suggested that policymakers consider allocating more relatively cheaper hydroelectric power to refineries because of their strategic importance.

“Because of the criticality of refineries, is it possible that in the energy mix, we will give them, you know, a lot more of the hydro that is cheaper?” he asked.

He also pointed to plans under the government’s 24-hour economy programme to develop large-scale solar plants that could reduce energy costs.

“The conversations, the 24-hour economy is thinking of putting together some solar, you know, large solar plants, you know, and which will reduce the cost of energy to around 3 to 4 cents per kilowatt-hour,” he said.

His comments come as Ghana intensifies efforts to process more gold locally.

GoldBod has directed Self-Financing Aggregators to refine gold doré in Ghana before export, effective September 1, 2026.

Under the directive, unrefined gold doré will no longer be approved for export. Refining must be undertaken at a refinery approved or designated by GoldBod, with the cost borne by the aggregator or its approved off-taker.

The move forms part of GoldBod’s mandate under the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025, to regulate gold refining and value addition, and aligns with the broader government objective of retaining more value from Ghana’s gold resources.

Chamber backs local refining but calls for collaboration

Dr Ashigbey said the refining policy was necessary but must be implemented collaboratively to ensure that additional costs did not undermine its objectives.

“So I think that this issue of beneficiation is a good thing for us, and, you know, all of us need to chip in,” he said.

“But it has to be done collaboratively. Government need to embrace industry to all work together so that we all can reduce the cost of doing this, because we’re looking at the issues of value.”

He said the mining sector was already absorbing additional costs under existing arrangements.

“So there’s some pain again, like the large scale, for example, the GANRAP, we are starting with a 0.55 when we are doing a weighted average of 0.098.”

“So that’s some extra subsidisation that we’re doing for government, but we all need to work together as a collective, as a country, as investors working together with government to reduce the cost.”

Dr Ashigbey's position is that Ghana's push for local gold refining can deliver greater value to the economy, but its success will depend on reducing the cost of refining and ensuring that government, mining companies and refinery operators share the burden of making the policy work.