Ghana may be best known as the world’s second-largest producer of cocoa or as the home of Lake Volta, the largest artificial lake in the world by surface area. However, Ghana is also Africa’s second-biggest gold producer, and hosts more estimated reserves than such key gold-producing countries as Peru and Papua New Guinea.

Southern Ghana has been considered one of the world’s most prolific regions for gold discoveries for some time, with both gold producers and explorers enjoying success there. Ghana also stacks up in terms of gold production numbers — in 2015, the country produced 85 tonnes of gold–down from 91 tonnes in 2014–making it one of the top gold-producing countries in the world.

Economic and geopolitical conditions

In 2010, Ghana was classified as a middle-income economy as it is well endowed with natural resources, and at the time had twice the per capita output of its poorer neighbor states in West Africa.  Aside from cocoa and gold, the country also exports resources such as oil, timber, electricity, diamonds, bauxite and manganese — they are all major sources of foreign revenues.

Ghana’s Minerals and Mining Act was put into effect in 2006 and underwent improvements in 2012 to ensure a more transparent system. Six mining regulations were passed by the country’s parliament in July 2012, according to Mining Weekly. The regulations apply to support services, compensation and resettlement, minerals and mine licensing, explosives and health and safety, among other things.

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Gold producers in Ghana

Ghana’s annual gold-mining revenues have begun to fall in recent years, dropping to $3.32 billion in 2015 from $3.84 billion in 2014. The decline is mostly attributed to the suspension of mining by AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU)  its Obuasi mine and a global decline in the gold price.

The country’s largest mine, Tarkwa, is operated by Gold Fields (NYSE:GFI). In the West Africa region between its Tarkwa and Damang mines, the company has a mineral resource of 15.1 million gold ounces and mineral reserves of 7.7 million gold ounces.

Another large company operating in Ghana is Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM), which has two gold-producing mines there: Ahafo and Akyem. In September, it was announced the company topped the Down Jones Sustainability World index for mining–the tenth consecutive year it’s been included on the list–making it the only mining company to have achieved such a milestone.

Furthermore, the Akyem mine was ranked first among Ghana’s 100 most prestigious companies, while the Ahafo mine was ranked eighth.

Endeavor Mining (TSX:EDV) is another gold producer in Ghana, and its Nzema gold mine is located on the south end of the Ashanti Gold Belt. The mine is 90 percent owned by the company, with 10 percent of it owned by the government of Ghana. The mine began commercial production in 2011, and has a proven and probable reserves  of 4.7metric tonnes at 2.4 g/t gold containing for 400,000 ounces.

Perseus Mining (TSX:PRU) began commercial production at its Edikan gold mine in January 2012. Average gold production is estimated at 222,000 ounces per year over the remaining of its 7.5 year mine life.

Gold juniors in Ghana

Golden Star Resources (TSX:GSC) has the Wassa mine through a 90 percent held subsidiary, which has mineral reserves of 1.5 million ounces at an average grade of 2.27 g/t gold.  The company also holds the Prestea mine, which has been in operation for over 100 years and has produced over 9 million ounces to date.

In September, the company announced that it had appointed Manroc Developments as the underground mining contractor for the Prestea Underground GOld Mine.

Asante Gold (FRA:1A9)  is another gold exploration company focused on Ghana. It has one development stage and three exploration projects within the region: the Kubi Gold Mine, an exploration and underground mine development project; the Betenase Concession, an exploration project; and the Fahiakoba Concession, an exploration project 100 percent owned by the company.

On September 8, it was announced that Asante had reached an agreement with Sikasante Mining to earn up to 100 percent interest in the Keyhole gold project in Ghana.

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Also in Ghana is Asanko Gold (TSX:AKG) and its Asanko Gold mine, which reached commercial production on April 1, 2016. In August, the company released its quarter 2 2016 results, having produced 36,337 ounces of gold in its first quarter of production.

Castle Minerals (ASX:CDT) currently holds interests in several projects in Ghana, including the Julie West and Kpali in the upper west region, and the Akoko Projecft. The Akoko Project is subject to a ale agreement with Goldcrest, however it has not yet met and is unlikely to meet within the required time frame a key condition precedent to list on the UK AIM trading exchange.

Did we miss a gold company that’s operating in Ghana? Let us know in the comments!

Securities Disclosure: I, Kristen Moran, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Editorial Disclosure: Asante Gold is a client of the Investing News Network. This article is not paid-for content.

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