Sege feud probe: Mines and Energy Committee engages Electrochem

The Parliamentary Select Committee on Mines and Energy has initiated a fact-finding mission to investigate the ongoing feud between Electrochem Ghana and the indigenes of Ada, which recently resulted in a shooting incident in Sege, leaving one person dead and several others injured.

Following a directive from the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu, the Committee on Lands and Forestry and Mines and Energy has begun a probe into the leasehold agreement that authorized Electrochem Ghana to undertake salt mining in Ada.

The Mines and Energy Committee took the first step by visiting the salt mining site of Electrochem Ghana, engaging in a closed-door meeting with the company’s management.

During the engagement, the committee interacted with staff and management, gaining insights into the challenges faced by Electrochem Ghana Limited.

The discussions aimed to provide the committee with a comprehensive understanding of the issues.  

The committee also conducted a tour of the Electrochem Salt Mining Factory, inspecting facilities such as the Salt Refinery and other areas of the mining site.

Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Mines and Energy, Mr Samuel Atta Akyea, assured the management of Electrochem Ghana Limited of the government’s full support to ensure that Ghana reaps the full benefits of the Ada Songor Salt Mining Factory initiative.

He expressed confidence that allowing the company to operate would significantly improve the livelihoods of the people.

Having listened to the challenges facing the company, Mr Atta Akyea stated that with the needed support, Electrochem could rival the benefits Ghana gets from gold and cocoa.

He emphasized the economic potential of salt, stating, “We might not even have to go to the IMF seeking for a bailout if we pay attention to the natural resource Salt.”

Ranking Member on the Mines and Energy Committee, John Jinapor, acknowledged the significant economic potential of the salt mining project, describing it as a “very huge project with the potential of impacting positively on the economic fortunes and activities of the people of Ada and Ghana.”

Mr Jinapor emphasized the role of Parliament in ensuring that businesses thrive and the importance of engaging all stakeholders to create a more peaceful business environment.

The committee’s visit aimed to gather the necessary details to assist in the investigation into the leasehold agreement and the recent incidents surrounding Electrochem Ghana’s operations.

The company, a subsidiary of the McDan Group of Companies, has been granted a 15-year mining lease for the commercial production of salt.

Meanwhile, Electrochem has denied any involvement in the shooting incident that occurred at Toflokpo in the Ada West District of the Greater Accra Region, which resulted in the death of one person and the injury of several others.

The company added that it is awaiting the police to conduct an investigation into the shooting and report its findings accordingly.

Ghana is now poised to export salt to Nigeria and other countries.

Industry experts project that the size of the global salt market will grow from $34.1 billion in 2023 to $48.6 billion by 2030.

Electrochem Ghana Ltd has been granted a 15-year mining lease for the commercial production of salt.

The use of salt for industrial, human and animal consumption purposes made it a highly strategic resource, which required significant investments to harness its commercial viability.

Electrochem Ghana Limited, the operators of the salt mine, is a subsidiary of the McDan Group of Companies and a wholly Ghanaian owned company.

The Company was registered in 2017 and has secured the concession of 41,000 acres at Ada Songor.

The Mine currently has the ability to produce some 650,000 metric tons of salt per annum and currently producing at 99.99% purity.

In the medium term, the output will be increased substantially and part of it used to feed a chlor-alkali plant to produce caustic soda and other chemical products.

It is expected to increase its productive capacity to one million metric tons in 2024, and to two million metric tons by 2027, thereby becoming the biggest salt producing facility in Africa.

So far, some $88 million has been invested into the ultra-modern project, which covers the provision of a salt washing plant and its ancillary infrastructure and facilities

Electrochem intends to build a world-class salt refinery and a chemical research university in Ada as part of the project.

The eventual goal is to provide 7,000 direct jobs to the residents of the area, with 3,000 already employed following the completion of the first phase of the project.

The company intends to construct a port two kilometers away from the salt mine to alleviate the strain that carrying the salt will place on highways.

The facilities include an astro turf football field, roads, scholarships, health clinics, schools, and potable water for the communities.

Electrochem Salt Mine is an example of what government policy backed by strong private sector participation could accomplish.