Ghana to purchase 30% of gold output from large-scale miners starting July

Ghana will begin purchasing 30% of gold produced by large-scale mining companies from July 1 under a new agreement aimed at strengthening the country’s foreign exchange reserves and expanding its domestic gold refining industry.

The new arrangement was disclosed on Thursday in a government statement announcing an agreement reached with large-scale mining companies through the Ghana Chamber of Mines.

The latest policy builds on Ghana’s domestic gold purchase programme introduced in 2022, when the Bank of Ghana began buying a portion of gold produced by mining companies to diversify the country’s foreign reserves, reduce dependence on foreign currencies and strengthen macroeconomic stability.

The programme initially required industrial miners to sell 20% of their annual gold output to the central bank, helping Ghana’s gold holdings rise to 19.2 metric tonnes by February. Earlier this year, the government revamped the initiative with the ambitious goal of increasing reserves to as much as 157 metric tonnes by 2028.

Under the new agreement, large-scale mining companies will now sell 30% of their gold production, in dore form, to the state-owned Gold Board (GoldBod), up from the previous 20% requirement.

GoldBod already purchases the entire production of Ghana’s artisanal gold mining sector, with officials saying larger gold reserves will provide a buffer against external economic shocks while creating an additional source of foreign exchange earnings when needed.

The latest agreement follows negotiations that began earlier this year after the Bank of Ghana proposed increasing the mandatory gold sales quota for industrial miners.

At the time, Paul Bleboo, Head of the Bank of Ghana’s Gold Management Programme, said the government intended to significantly expand its purchases from large-scale producers.

The latest agreement comes just three months after Ghana reaffirmed plans to overhaul its mining royalty regime despite diplomatic pressure from the United States, China and several other countries urging it to reconsider the policy.

The reform is intended to ensure the country captures a greater share of mining revenues during periods of elevated commodity prices, while lithium producers would also be brought under a similar variable royalty structure ranging between 5% and 12%. Other minerals would continue to attract the existing flat 5% royalty.

Ghana is Africa’s largest gold producer and ranks among the world’s leading bullion producers, with annual output reaching about six million ounces in 2025.

The precious metal remains the backbone of the country’s economy, contributing about 40% of export earnings and serving as one of Ghana’s most important sources of foreign exchange.

Despite its position as a leading producer, much of Ghana’s gold continues to be exported in raw or semi-processed form, limiting the value captured domestically.

To address this, Ghana inaugurated its first commercial gold refinery, the Royal Ghana Gold Refinery, in August 2024 through a public-private partnership involving India’s Rosy Royal Minerals and the Bank of Ghana, which holds a 20% equity stake.

The refinery forms part of Ghana’s broader strategy to increase local processing, improve traceability across the gold value chain and position the country as a regional hub for gold refining and bullion trading.