The Minority in Parliament has clarified that it never opposed the 10 percent royalty rate for the Ewoyaa lithium project under the Akufo-Addo administration.
Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen, Collins Dauda, Chairman of the Lands and Natural Resources Committee, explained that the Minority’s concern was ensuring that the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2010, aligned with the agreement, so that both the law and the contract reflected the same royalty rate.
“We did not reject the agreement. In committee, nothing is explicitly rejected or accepted; a report is sent to the preliminary stage, where it becomes clear whether the Minority agrees or not. We requested that the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2010 (Act 794) be amended to raise the royalty rate from 5 percent to 10 percent, ensuring consistency between the law and the agreement. At that time, the report had not even reached the preliminary stage. It is important to adhere to the law; we cannot enter into a contract that violates it. Without this amendment, approval of the agreement would have been difficult. We simply want the right thing to be done. The minister is currently arranging negotiations for a new agreement with the company,” he said.
The clarification follows concerns raised by the Majority Caucus that the original 10 percent royalty conflicted with Ghana’s existing mining law, which sets royalties at 5 percent.
The government has since submitted a revised agreement with Barari DV Ghana Limited, reflecting the legally mandated 5 percent royalty. The update, covering lithium extraction in the Central Region, comes after the company requested a review of lease terms due to falling global lithium prices.
The Minority has, however, criticized the new terms as less beneficial to the state, prompting ongoing efforts in Parliament to amend relevant legislation to better safeguard national interests.
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