The Professional and Management Staff Union (PMSU) of the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) has distanced itself from the ongoing demonstration by some workers against the government’s search for a strategic investor, insisting it had no involvement in the protest.
In a statement issued on Monday, July 27, the union, which represents Assistant Managers, Managers and Area Managers of VALCO, said it was neither consulted nor informed about the planned demonstration and should not be associated with the position being advanced by the protesters.
“We have no knowledge of, involvement in, or association with the demonstration currently being organized against the ongoing search for a strategic investor for the Company,” the statement said.
According to the union, “We were not consulted, informed, or engaged in any form prior to the planning or announcement of this action. Whatever position is being advanced through this demonstration is not the position of the professional and management staff of VALCO.”
The union maintained that VALCO urgently needs a credible strategic investor to revive its operations, noting that the search for an investor has been ongoing for more than five years while the condition of the smelter has continued to deteriorate.
It said the company requires significant capital investment to modernise obsolete infrastructure, restore production capacity and secure reliable power and raw material supplies.
“We state unequivocally that VALCO needs a strategic investor,” the union stressed.
PMSU also threw its support behind the government’s position, saying it agrees with the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources that securing a strategic investor remains the best option for reviving the company.
“We therefore align ourselves with the position communicated by the Honorable Minister for Lands and Natural Resources on behalf of Government, that securing a credible strategic investor is the pathway to reviving VALCO, and we urge Government to press the process to conclusion without further delay,” it stated.
The union also challenged claims that $60 million would be enough to restore VALCO to full and efficient operation.
According to PMSU, its members, made up of engineers, maintenance professionals and operations managers who work at the plant daily, believe the estimate significantly understates the scale of investment required.
“As the engineers, maintenance professionals and operations personnel who work on this plant every day, we reject that figure,” the statement said.
“It does not reflect the condition of the equipment. Much of the plant is obsolete rather than merely worn… Restoring VALCO to efficient, competitive operation is not a repair exercise. It is a rebuild.”
The union estimated that the company would require about $700 million or more to fully rehabilitate the facility.
“Our assessment, grounded in direct working knowledge of the asset base, is that the requirement is of the order of $700 million or more,” it noted.
It warned that investing only $60 million would provide only a temporary solution and leave the company facing the same challenges in the near future.
“A $60 million intervention would not make VALCO efficient. It would consume public funds, deliver a short reprieve, and return the Company to the same position,” the statement added.
PMSU called for an independent technical and financial review of the competing proposals for VALCO’s revival.
It urged the government to publish the basis for the $60 million estimate, including equipment assessments and costings, to allow independent scrutiny.
The union also called on the government to continue with the strategic investor process and ensure that all proposals are subjected to transparent engineering and financial evaluation rather than public demonstrations.
It further cautioned that protests opposing the investor search could send the wrong signal to potential investors.
“We are also bound to observe that a demonstration organized without reference to the management body… signals instability to the very investors the Company needs,” the statement said.
PMSU reaffirmed its commitment to the revival of VALCO and Ghana’s aluminium industry, insisting that restoring the company would require “serious capital and a serious partner.”
Read the full statement below:
