Proceeds from salt production could rival that of gold & cocoa if...Atta Akyea
The Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Mines and Energy, Mr Samuel Atta Akyea, has underscored the importance of the Electrochem salt project at Ada to the socio-economic development of the country.
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He says if the project is fully support by all stakeholders, proceeds from it could rival that of gold and cocoa.
For him, Ghana will not need to go to the IMF seeking a bailout if more attention is paid to the salt sector.
Mr Atta Akyea made the observation when the Parliamentary Select Committee on Mines and Energy visited the Electrochem Salt project site on Friday, November 17, 2023.
The visit was to enable the Commitee to get first-hand information on the project.
“For the moment I'm very amazed that here is another undertaking that if given our full support would even rival what we are getting from gold and cocoa. We might not even have to go to the IMF seeking a bailout if we pay attention to the natural resource Salt.
What amazes me is that so far they haven't even done 40 per cent of the capacity of this setup... they also intend to do some massive export drive that will also rake in some foreign exchange for Ghana," Mr Atta Akyea said.
Electrochem Ghana has so far invested $88 million into the ultra-modern salt mining project at Ada.
Caution against saboteurs
Mr Atta Akyea cautioned people to desist from sabotaging the project which, pointing out that the project can contribute massively to the economic growth of the country.
"I'm using this opportunity to sign a note of caution to those who believe that the economic conditions of the people of Ada should not improve when you have a committed investor seeking to improve the livelihoods of the people.
When they have created a space for the community people to mine Salt and further provide a buy-back ready market and somebody sitting somewhere thinks he can undermine this undertaking, that is lawlessness and I assure them that the law will take its due process and deal with such characters," Atta Akyea warned.
He added that "We have engaged all the stakeholders especially with the company undertaking the Salt Mining Project, Electrochem Ghana Limited and we have learned about all the challenges they are facing”.
The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu, directed the Committee on Lands and Forestry and Mines and Energy to conduct a probe into the leasehold agreement that authorized Electrochem Ghana to embark on salt mining in Ada.
Hope for people of Ada
After the visit, the Ranking Member on committee, John Jinapor said Electrochem salt project will impact positively on the economic fortunes and activities of the people of Ada and surrounding communities.
“It is obvious that this is a very huge project and has the potential of impacting positively on the economic fortunes and activities of the people of Ada...." he said.
He indicated that what Parliament does is to ensure that businesses thrive “so it is necessary to engage all the stakeholders to ensure a more peaceful business environment."
Shooting incident
Meanwhile, Electrochem Ghana Limited has denied any involvement in the shooting incident that occurred at Toflokpo in the Ada West District of the Greater Accra Region, which resulted in the death of one person and the injury of several others.
The company said it is waiting for the police to finish its investigation into the shooting.
Electrochem is a subsidiary of the McDan Group of Companies. It is the largest salt and chlorine-alkali manufacturing firm in West Africa with a concession spanning 41,000 acres at Ada Songor.