Ghana To Reduce Mining Lease Duration Under New Reforms

According to Minerals Commission CEO Martin Ayisi, preparations are in motion to restrict prospecting licenses to a maximum of 15 years in order to discourage businesses from retaining them indefinitely and promote active development.

The current 30-year maximum duration for mining leases will be reduced following a case-by-case discussion between the government and mining corporations, as per Ghana’s proposed mining law amendments.

Terms will also be decided by considerations such as production performance, social performance, and environmental concerns.

It is also suggested that stability agreements, which provide regulatory and tax protections, be trimmed, and that future extensions be limited to capital recovery periods.

This could be the origin of the 15-year reference, however it only refers to the length of protective fiscal agreements and not to mining leases per se.

Is Ghana’s GDP Dependent Significantly On Mining?

The goal of Ghana’s mining law amendments is to significantly reduce mining lease terms, despite the fact that, each firm will be consulted before decisions are made.

The 15-year period appears to be related to stability agreements rather than standard lease terms.