Civil society groups have backed more equity investment in Electrochem Ghana Limited, especially from the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), and they call its operations at Ada a strategic national asset. The Ghanaian Chronicle reported the endorsement.
It followed a visit by CSO leaders to the Ada Songor Salt Project, where they toured the facilities and met management, traditional authorities and community stakeholders. They said they were satisfied with the scale of what Electrochem has invested over the past five years, and described the venture as one of the largest salt mining operations in West Africa.
Kofi Owusu Hene, known as Kofi Kapito and chief executive of the Consumer Protection Agency, said the investment already made has positioned Ada as a future salt production hub of continental significance. “Electrochem’s commitment to developing Ghana’s salt industry is evident,” he said. He added a condition: management must keep explaining the long-term benefits to residents and deal with concerns through dialogue and consultation.
The $500 million plan
Electrochem is pursuing a $500 million expansion. Chief executive Francis Buamah said investors from the United Arab Emirates, France, the United Kingdom and Austria have asked about buying equity stakes, and that talks have intensified over the past six months. Those investors, he said, “see Ghana as a gateway to the African market.”
He pointed to the African Continental Free Trade Area, a market of more than 1.2 billion people.
The money would pay for automated pumping systems, pipelines and a jetty, vessels and barges, a finished salt refinery, a caustic soda plant, mining equipment and a research-focused university. The company’s stated aim is to raise annual salt production to one million tonnes.
Board chairman Professor Kofi Abotsi said private investment in the Songor project has to deliver more than shareholder returns. In his words, it should create jobs, support industrial growth and improve living conditions around the concession.
The traditional council
The vice president of the Ada Traditional Council called the Songor Lagoon one of Ghana’s most valuable natural resources, capable of producing millions of metric tonnes of industrial salt a year. The council recalled the 1991 Songor Master Plan, which proposed coordinated production involving investors, communities and structured management of the lagoon. It said the government gave Electrochem the concession in 2019 to revive an industry left underused for decades.
Nene Agudey Obichere III rejected what he called misconceptions about the company. Its work, he said, is consistent with sustainable development, community participation and restoring the lagoon ecosystem. The council praised Electrochem’s spending on jobs, drinking water and women’s empowerment programs, and asked for continued government support, peaceful engagement among stakeholders and effective law enforcement.
