October this year, the government signed a lithium mining lease agreement with Barari DV Limited, a subsidiary of Atlantic Lithium Limited, an Australia-based firm, to mine lithium at Ewoyaa in the Mfantseman Municipality of the Central Region.
The agreement said to have been signed after more than 15 months of negotiations has attracted criticisms from both individuals and some institutions, including former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo.
She mentions joint ventures and service contracts as some of the methods that are much better than a lease.
The other critics agree with Justice Akuffo that the lease agreement is archaic as it is like those of colonial times and that the government must have sole ownership of mining resources to ensure that citizens benefit from it fully.
To them, that is the modern best practice where the host country is the owner and can contract a mining company through transparent competitive bidding process to mine the mineral and to reinvest for its cost of production plus profit margin so that the mining company is in contract with the owner.
In the current agreement, the government has 19 per cent stake that will subsequently increase to 30 per cent.
However, the government, particularly the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, and some individuals like Sir Sam Jonah and the CEO of Minerals Commission are defending it as favourable to Ghana, surpassing all those other lithium leases around the world.
We think the arguments, particularly the criticisms, are raising issues that can be looked at, if need be, for reframing the lease agreement.
We are happy the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources says the government is open to alternative agreement to the current Lithium Mining lease entered into with Barari DV Limited.
This is an indication that all is not lost once the government is ready to listen to superior arguments, alternatives or superior propositions from individual Ghanaians and organisations and reconstruct a new one in the interest of Ghana and to the benefit of all Ghanaians.
One thing we like about the agreement and which must be made sacrosanct is having a lithium refinery to add value to the mineral.
Currently, African countries that are mining lithium export the mineral in its raw state.
With some stance of a sort taken on the nature of the agreement, we think there is one important issue to look at and that is its legitimacy and transparency.
Regarding this, Justice Akuffo says the lithium lease is incomplete without ratification by parliament, explaining that it is a deal that has to be ratified by a named authority, and that is the Parliament of the Republic of Ghana.
Also, the Minority in Parliament wants the government to lay before the house details of the agreement with Barari DV for scrutiny and approval.
We believe this should not be a problem for the government because already, the Mining Lease is subject to ratification by Parliament in accordance with Article 268(1) of the Constitution and section 5(4) of Act 703.
The importance of lithium, including its use in the medical and electronic industries, should prompt the country’s managers to secure a good deal for its exploitation.
