VALCO To Shut Down?

The Volta Aluminum Company (VALCO), the nation’s premier aluminum smelter is said to be bracing itself for an imminent shut down as a result of its failure to secure cheap and reliable supply of electricity to operate.

Reports indicate that the shut down may occur by April but what is not known is whether the shut down will be permanent.

Already, management is seriously executing strategic plans aimed at shutting down the plant without creating tension among the stakeholders in its operations.

VALCO officials have played down the company’s row with the Ghanaian Government over power tariff and linked the shut down to the level of water in hydroelectric dam which is said to be at a record low of below 240ft in two decades.

The dam according to the official is losing substantial amount of water weekly and presumed that its level will drop to below 200ft in six weeks before the rains start.

Currently, VALCO is operating only a single potline, which according to the company does not make economic sense. There are also reports that a regulated scheme to completely lay off all staff except a handful of administrative staff, has begun in earnest.

According to a Business and Financial Times report, some staff in Tema say they are psyching themselves up for the worst, saying, “you may not find us here on your next visit.”

Records indicate that with only one potline to operate, more than 80% of its workforce at the operations unit has been sacked while only 30% of its management and administrative units are being kept.

Most of VALCO’s customers have been forced to adapt contingency plans to avoid suffering the severe effects of a shut down. Aluworks, the foremost dependant on VALCO, even though made arrangement when the crisis started, to import aluminum to carry on its operations, will still be very much affected by VALCO’s shut down.

Aluworks depends on VALCO for molten metal, liquid aluminum, which cannot be imported. Speaking on efforts to salvage the situation, an official said VRA has not been transparent and objective in the negotiations for a new power agreement indicating that the company is prepared to renegotiate new tariffs, but said it must fit into overall operational plan.

Analysts say the government’s declaration of a golden age of business is about to suffer another major set back as VALCO prepares a shut down after nearly forty years of operations. What has been found to be an operational miscalculation is the fact that VALCO’s operations have been tied to the Akosombo dam without plans to find alternative sources of power.

Other companies which depend on Aluworks to produce roofing sheets, cooking pots, louver blades, doors and frames will also suffer from VALCO’s shut down.

The Volta Aluminum Company (VALCO), the nation’s premier aluminum smelter is said to be bracing itself for an imminent shut down as a result of its failure to secure cheap and reliable supply of electricity to operate.

Reports indicate that the shut down may occur by April but what is not known is whether the shut down will be permanent.

Already, management is seriously executing strategic plans aimed at shutting down the plant without creating tension among the stakeholders in its operations.

VALCO officials have played down the company’s row with the Ghanaian Government over power tariff and linked the shut down to the level of water in hydroelectric dam which is said to be at a record low of below 240ft in two decades.

The dam according to the official is losing substantial amount of water weekly and presumed that its level will drop to below 200ft in six weeks before the rains start.

Currently, VALCO is operating only a single potline, which according to the company does not make economic sense. There are also reports that a regulated scheme to completely lay off all staff except a handful of administrative staff, has begun in earnest.

According to a Business and Financial Times report, some staff in Tema say they are psyching themselves up for the worst, saying, “you may not find us here on your next visit.”

Records indicate that with only one potline to operate, more than 80% of its workforce at the operations unit has been sacked while only 30% of its management and administrative units are being kept.

Most of VALCO’s customers have been forced to adapt contingency plans to avoid suffering the severe effects of a shut down. Aluworks, the foremost dependant on VALCO, even though made arrangement when the crisis started, to import aluminum to carry on its operations, will still be very much affected by VALCO’s shut down.

Aluworks depends on VALCO for molten metal, liquid aluminum, which cannot be imported. Speaking on efforts to salvage the situation, an official said VRA has not been transparent and objective in the negotiations for a new power agreement indicating that the company is prepared to renegotiate new tariffs, but said it must fit into overall operational plan.

Analysts say the government’s declaration of a golden age of business is about to suffer another major set back as VALCO prepares a shut down after nearly forty years of operations. What has been found to be an operational miscalculation is the fact that VALCO’s operations have been tied to the Akosombo dam without plans to find alternative sources of power.

Other companies which depend on Aluworks to produce roofing sheets, cooking pots, louver blades, doors and frames will also suffer from VALCO’s shut down.