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The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and its mining sector regulator, the Minerals Commission, have not received any formal application or request from FGR to put the Prestea-Bogoso Mine under care and maintenance.
Care and maintenance is when a company suspends the major operations of a mine such as the extraction of ore for processing.
The company only undertakes minor repair and remedial works at the mine to forestall complete deterioration of assets until restart and redevelopment.
A release issued by the Minerals Commission in Accra yesterday indicated that an application to suspend production, clearly set out in section 51 of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), required the holder of the mining lease to serve a notice to that effect on the minister.
“No such request or application has been submitted to the minister. In the event that such an application is received, it shall be considered in accordance with applicable regulations and the current state of the mine and a decision taken in the best interest of the country,” a statement issued by the Public Affairs Department of the commission stated.
The commission said FGR Bogoso Prestea Ltd, which took over the operation of the Prestea-Bogoso Mine from Golden Star Resources, only made a verbal presentation to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to put the mine under care and maintenance, without following up with a formal application as prescribed by law.
Context
The commission, however, admitted that it was aware of the stoppage of mining operations in December last year due to some operational challenges.
It said the commission issued a notice to FGR in August 2023 for the company to show cause why the mining lease should not be terminated due to identified breaches.
The commission explained that the notice expired in December 2023 and that the regulator shall shortly advise the minister on the next steps following the expiration of the notice period.
Mines are usually placed under care and maintenance when they become less profitable and the halt in operation allows it to stop further investments, as it usually leads to redundancies and less economic activity in the host community.
For example, AngloGold Ashanti placed its Obuasi underground mine under care and maintenance from 2016 until the start of its redevelopment in early 2019.
Both activities received the requisite approvals from the government.
The first phase blast occurred in February 2019 with first gold poured in December 2019.
The first phase of the redevelopment project was completed by the end of September 2020 which paved the way for commercial production on October 1, 2020.
The company has since embarked on its second phase construction and mine development.
The Prestea-Bogoso Mine is currently under the control of FGR Bogoso Prestea Ltd (FGR) and its principal shareholder is Blue International Holdings Limited, which is based in the United Kingdom.
The mine was previously operated by Golden Star Resources Limited until the asset was transferred to FGR.
The Minerals Commission gave an assurance of its unflinching commitment to ensure the effective and efficient management of the mineral resources of the country.
It said it was, therefore, committed to the protection of mining investment, in general, and the Prestea Bogoso Mine, in particular, to protect jobs, the local Prestea economy, community development as well as revenue generation for the benefit of Ghanaians.
