Ghana's Extractive Industries: Follow De Beers' Botswana Partnership Model

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• BJ 12 years ago

  Our leaders must, indeed, work on this exploitation by the so-called Western partners who are practically inhumane. I hope NDC will ensure that more prudent measures will be put in place to make sure future pacts with any for ...
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  Our leaders must, indeed, work on this exploitation by the so-called Western partners who are practically inhumane. I hope NDC will ensure that more prudent measures will be put in place to make sure future pacts with any foreign partners will be well considered.

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• Concerned Ghanaian 12 years ago

  That was exactly what Nkrumah started by building the University of Mines. Ghana was supposed to be refining our gold dust into gold ingots for export. When the atrocious coup of 1966 happened,the obnoxious UP/NLM/Matemehu fi ...
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  That was exactly what Nkrumah started by building the University of Mines. Ghana was supposed to be refining our gold dust into gold ingots for export. When the atrocious coup of 1966 happened,the obnoxious UP/NLM/Matemehu filled with hate destroyed everything Nkrumah stood for.
  
  That is why we are in the state in which we are when it comes to our natural resources.
  
  
  
  
  
  That is why up to today we still ship gold dust out of this country to be processed outside.

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• wassa 12 years ago

  abaa Ghana ships Gold bars [or gold ingots] as you call it and not gold dust please? What is wrong with you?

  abaa Ghana ships Gold bars [or gold ingots] as you call it and not gold dust please? What is wrong with you?

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• C.Y. ANDY-K 12 years ago

  Yes, we'd get good deals with those vampire foreign investors if we have informed and sensible leaders, being advised by knowledgeable experts. We can't say that's the case at the moment.
  
  Upon all the consultations and int ...
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  Yes, we'd get good deals with those vampire foreign investors if we have informed and sensible leaders, being advised by knowledgeable experts. We can't say that's the case at the moment.
  
  Upon all the consultations and international conferences on the oil sector, Ghana adopted the Royalty Tax System which has been abandoned by ALL African countries for the far, far better Production Sharing Agreement. My brother Solomon has been campaigning to no avail to have the govt take a look at this very bad situation again but nothing is happening. This sweet deal for the oil companies in return for carrying some Ghanaian cronies as "local partners", without such individuals having any know-how about oil nor contributing a $ in shares is the norm for both the NPP and the NDC. And Ghanaians in general don't have a clue what is going on and the colossal sums we are losing right now. Rather, they'd spend so much time on Woyome's puny windfall compared to what we are losing thanks to the bad agreements motivated by their selfish and greedy interests.
  
  A recent article by my brother on the losses Ghana is sustaining has been blocked by some diabolical forces no doubt linked to the vampires sucking us dry!
  
  Andy-K

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• C.Y. ANDY-K 12 years ago

  Here is the article.
  
  Feature Article of Friday, 21 2012
  
  Columnist: Kwawukume, Solomon
  The Jubilee Fields: Losses Suffered By Ghana
  
  Fellow Ghanaians, while you celebrate your X’mas and New Year festivities, just po ...
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  Here is the article.
  
  Feature Article of Friday, 21 2012
  
  Columnist: Kwawukume, Solomon
  The Jubilee Fields: Losses Suffered By Ghana
  
  Fellow Ghanaians, while you celebrate your X’mas and New Year festivities, just ponder over this. Ghanaians have lost US$741,423,210 in the first year of operation of the Jubilee Fields under the Royalty Tax System Agreement instead of the Production Sharing Agreement.
  
  Projected loss for 2012 operations is between US$800 million and U$1billion. This is where the technocrats, the politicians of the major ruling parties and GNPC have landed Ghana. Bogus rationalization and justifications have been put in the public domain to support why Ghana had to enter into such agreements, and you ordinary Ghanaians seem to be believing them. The few elite and academicians who, perhaps, understand the issues at stake are cowards and afraid to speak out. Is it likely they have been compromised? Or, just do not want to jeopardise their own self interests in the realms of the powers-that-be and the money bags who have arrived in town? Where are their ethics and conscience?
  
  Ghanaians, do we have to fold our arms and look on helplessly and say the agreements have already been signed? The agreements can be reviewed, they cannot be sacrosanct. The next Parliament and incoming Government should seriously consider reviewing these agreements immediately to arrest these colossal losses to Ghanaians.
  
  It is rather unfortunate to hear the Minister of Energy said the Petroleum Exploration and Production Bill would not be reviewed to include open bidding of oil blocks, which is the modern trend in the upstream oil industry. On the other hand, he said PNDC decree 84, which is more than 25 years old, was being reviewed to include modern trends as done elsewhere and yet he is not aware that open tender and competitive bidding of oil blocks is one major requirement in the upstream industry to prevent corruption and get the best deal. Chad, Niger and South Sudan, a country less than 2 years old, all new comers into the oil industry, are doing it.
  
  The Ministry of Energy, GNPC and the politicians on the one hand and the foreign oil companies on the other hand, have all conspired to deceive the people of Ghana into believing that the way they are handling the upstream oil industry is the best for Ghana. So for the 1-2% shares the foreign oil companies are compelled to give to specially chosen “local partners,” crony front-men of the powers-that-be who do not contribute a dime or know-how in investment, the rest of Ghanaians are sold down the river all over again modern style!
  
  Can God save ordinary Ghanaians from these politicians, technocrats, the clutches of greed and ineptitude? Or Ghanaians shall save themselves through popular agitation?
  
  By: Solomon Kwawukume
  
  Author, Ghana’s Oil and Gas Discoveries
  
  Towards full Maximum Benefits
  
  Solomon.kwawukume@yahoo.com

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• joey london! 12 years ago

  This is the most useless free masons piece of shxxt I have ever read!Let them adopt De Beers' Botswana partnership model now!kwaseeeaaaaa gh,was always the he and not the mooo!

  This is the most useless free masons piece of shxxt I have ever read!Let them adopt De Beers' Botswana partnership model now!kwaseeeaaaaa gh,was always the he and not the mooo!

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• STEVE 12 years ago

  This is a highly productive article highlightening how Ghana can enjoyably benefit from its natural endowment of resources, oil and gas to be precise.
  
  A comparison was made here for Ghana to emulate what Bostwana has been ...
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  This is a highly productive article highlightening how Ghana can enjoyably benefit from its natural endowment of resources, oil and gas to be precise.
  
  A comparison was made here for Ghana to emulate what Bostwana has been doing with its resources which I doubt if oil is among, which is termed as "De Beer" that is 50-50 agreement with foreign partners. Unfortunately the writer couldn't going into details of such an agreement with corrupt foreign partners. When you say 50-50 what are u talking about? Perhaps he refers to sharing of the oil and gas monies, even with this, Ghana will be still disadvantaged.
  
  Ghana got many other natural resources such as diamond, maganese, bauxite, cocoa etc. Something like this newly discovery oil can be reserved 'unextrated until the old existing resources have been fully taken out of foreign- incharge hands. How can this be done? The government must absolutely disassociate foreign companies from mining in the country. First of all, the government must train its own people how to extract such resources (gas and oil) from ground by offering scholarships for them to obtain ideas and knowledge from where these companies originally come from or base. After such training and skills, the government can afford to get the machinery and other equipment for the trained-people to extract. At this juncture, if there is no enough money to buy the machinery then we can borrow which is very easy to pay back with expected natural resources money.
  
  Moreover, we must train our people how to use such resources to process products here in the country before exporting. As at now, just common and long existing cocoa we can't add anything significant before exporting. With such training and with such our own machinery then jobs and highly profit can be maximised by ours. We shouldn't have any 50-50 or 100-100 deal with any slave master until we are selling our extracted and manufactured products to them in Europe and America.

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• C.Y. ANDY-K 12 years ago

  Steve,
  
  Your point is taken but Ghana doesn't need to reserve the gas and oil until we learn how to mine them ourselves. Had we adopted the Production Sharing System and certain conditions like Nigeria did, it'd still have ...
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  Steve,
  
  Your point is taken but Ghana doesn't need to reserve the gas and oil until we learn how to mine them ourselves. Had we adopted the Production Sharing System and certain conditions like Nigeria did, it'd still have been a far better gain for Ghana than the 50-50 Botswana-De Beers arrangement Kofi is advocating now. Kofi simply doesn't know enough about agreements in the oil sector, hence his recommendation, which by inference, must cover the petroleum sector too.
  
  Then on your suggestion that we train to drill our own oil and gas, that was exactly the model the GNPC under Tsatsu Tsikata was pursuing. Many Ghanains were sent to Angola and Libya to work on oil fields to learn the rudiments of oil drilling. Then GNPC also bought drilling ships, I think 3, a couple of which were on loan to Angola and in the Middle East with Ghanaians attached to acquire experience and technical knowhow. When the NPP took over, Akuffo Addo as AG and Justice Minister demobilised all those efforts by selling the drills to settle that Societe Generale suit resulting from the losses the GNPC incurred on those derivative deals the SC supervised. GNPC was contesting that suit in London courts and all signs showed that they'd get some major relief, as the bad advice given by SC meant the onus of blame for the loss shouldn't be put on GNPC alone. Everything indicated that SC was ready to settle but Akuffo Addo jettisoned all the efforts of Tsatsu Tsikata, sold the drills, dumped all those Ghanaians affiliated to the drills, etc. in Angola, Libya and Middle East and paid off SC! In stepped the filibusters and the vampire privateers!
  
  We have to recollect that the Osagyefo Barge was being built to exploit the huge gas reserves which the GNPC had already discovered and owned 100%. Those gas reserves have been given to the Kosmos, Tullow, et al. consortium as sweetener on a silver platter! That was a disaster in judgement!
  
  I wish Ghanaians pay more attention to the oil sector rather than devote so much time to inane issues. There is so much on the Internet these days one can easily self-educate oneself on the subject and be in a position to make informed comments.
  
  Andy-K

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• Blaque Marque 12 years ago

  Oh brother where art thou? WHat a beauty that you have laid bare all that we need to know.
  The article upon which your comment was made had a good intention but you hav also made us understand better, that there is an even b ...
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  Oh brother where art thou? WHat a beauty that you have laid bare all that we need to know.
  The article upon which your comment was made had a good intention but you hav also made us understand better, that there is an even better way to have handled this.
  Nice ccomment

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• T. 12 years ago

  Thank you Kofi.

  Thank you Kofi.

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• Big Joe . belaruss, ukraine , russia 12 years ago

  Welcoming topic . this topic must be taken seriously and address by new government.Becos time has change. I repeat time has change. Gone are the days when Europeans scramble for Africa
  But in Ghana its looks strange that in ...
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  Welcoming topic . this topic must be taken seriously and address by new government.Becos time has change. I repeat time has change. Gone are the days when Europeans scramble for Africa
  But in Ghana its looks strange that in the midst of all our academics,political elites nothing has changed. The Authorites in the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum , Ghana National Petroleum Corporation and Energy Commission are very aware of the "bogus oil agreement" underpend and careless to rise up to the demand of the people of Ghana. The Investors realize that our political leaders and policy makers are "dwarfs" hence the manipulation .... afterall it must be 50:50 and not 90:10 . Similar shocking " bogus agreements" lies in the gold mining sectors .All our natural and hydrocarbon wealth are robbed naked ....but who will stand up and advocate against this " bogus agreement " for Ghanaias. Infact ! the black skin is helpless, helpless
  We need ACTIVISTS FROM ALL REGIONS OF GHANA TO FIGHT FOR BETTER OIL AND GOLD AGREEMENTS WITH "MANIPULATORS"
  ITS UNTHINKABLE .
  OIL AND GOLD AGREEMENTS ..
  bogus oil and gold agreemnets in Ghana should be rewrite..... its cheating

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• KP 12 years ago

  Some education will help. Ghana gets: Corporation tax-35%, Participating interest-10%or15%, and Royalties and social environmental responsibility-10%. Totalling 55% or 60%. This is true to the extractive industry as a whole. ...
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  Some education will help. Ghana gets: Corporation tax-35%, Participating interest-10%or15%, and Royalties and social environmental responsibility-10%. Totalling 55% or 60%. This is true to the extractive industry as a whole. The government gets over £3 billion a year from minning ie, from Gold. We can do better by adding value to the gold Bars that we export [by refining], I agree with that.

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• Mumuni 12 years ago

  Great Article and I have been talking about how Ghana is being short-changed with Extractive Industries for a long time now.
  Our leaders are useless. Ghana used to have 50 or 49% of the Ashanti Gold mines but Sam Jonah and ...
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  Great Article and I have been talking about how Ghana is being short-changed with Extractive Industries for a long time now.
  Our leaders are useless. Ghana used to have 50 or 49% of the Ashanti Gold mines but Sam Jonah and the NPP people sold the Ghana share to the Anglo Ashanti company for which he, Jonah was reward (among other things) by being knighted by the Queen of England. And he took his ill-gotten money through that deal to go invest in gold fields in South Africa.
  
  The Government of Ghana needs to buy back the share, which was inappropriately, sold to Anglo-Ashanti at the same price it was sold to them. Could you believe the high price of gold in recent years and Ghana is not benefiting from it?!
  I for one, I think Sam Jonah and those in NPP who were involved in the shady sell of the Ashanti gold mine should be prosecuted for economic loss crime to the Ghana.

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• NII LARTEY NARTEY 12 years ago

  Until we do away with all the unscrupulously dishonest crook "woyomenized" politicians who have turned our noble country into a safe havens of criminals and our people criminal worshipers, the De Beers model won't work here i ...
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  Until we do away with all the unscrupulously dishonest crook "woyomenized" politicians who have turned our noble country into a safe havens of criminals and our people criminal worshipers, the De Beers model won't work here in Ghana.
  
  I visited Botswana and visited the African Mall where De Beers have their magnificent headquarters. It was a nice place and hope our leaders here will read your nice article.

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• Sankofa 12 years ago

  Why should we rely on the goodwill of foreign companies to develop our extractive industries?
  
  Why should we not extract our own minerals, oil and gas and process them? What prevents from so doing?
  
  The mantra that we nei ...
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  Why should we rely on the goodwill of foreign companies to develop our extractive industries?
  
  Why should we not extract our own minerals, oil and gas and process them? What prevents from so doing?
  
  The mantra that we neither have the expertise nor the capital does not wash. We have been pleading this for over 50 years, and have still not made the effort to address the issue.
  
  Let us be wise and decide to take control of our resources within 10 years. We must set up our own mines, refineries and processing plants.We must extract and process our oil, and process gas to generate electricity and meet domestic demand. We can do all this in 10 years. Let us put our minds to it, and stop our overdependence on foreign investors.

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