Shaanxi Scoops Away An Estimated $317,002,556

A Chinese mining company in the Upper East called Shaanxi Ghana Mining Company is estimated to have scooped away several tonnes of gold worth $317,002,556 through large scale ‘galamsey’ since 2012 to 2017 without taxes.

A little research into their dealings after 17 people died last month through Shaanxi’s mine- blast has revealed this staggering figures.

It will be recalled that in 2017 when Shaanxi’s mine blast killed five people in the Upper East, the then sector Minister Mr. Peter Amewu went up there to commensurate with the deceased family and seized the opportunity to caution the Chinese in a Daily Graphic report dated August 10, 2017 captioned “Stop the galamsey and Come For Proper License – Amewu Tells Shaanxi”.

In that report the then Minister is quoted to have said that “Shaanxi should not hide behind the concept of providing support services to two small scale mining groups, known as the Yenyeya and Pubortaaba Mining groups, and be engaging in large scale mining activities."

"Your methodology, practices and mode of operations in itself constitute an illegality in other words you are rather engaged in large scale mining activities instead of providing support services to the two small scale mining groups."

Operating with five deep-mine shafts on a hundred acre concession under the guise of providing Mine Support Services (MSS) for the two local small scale miners at Gbane in the Talensi district, Shaanxi’s own official work program/schedule sent to the Minerals Commission (MinComm) indicated that the concession they are working on has ore deposit of about 4,900,648.00 tonnes with quality of about 6.12 grams per tonne.

If, 6.12grams out of 4,900,648.00 tonnes equals 29,991,965.76 grams or 29,991.97 kilograms of gold, then granted the gold spot price today per kilogram is $42,278.33, therefore multiplying 29,991.97kilograms by the spot price amounts to $1,268,010,226

Therefore, if Shaanxi mines gold worth $63,400,511.29 per anum in five years between 2012 and 2017, the Chinese company would have done $317,002,556 as seen in the table below with no taxes and this should be a cause for concern to the Ministry and MinComm but they rather appear not to be bothered for whatever considerations or motivation.

The Chinese company commands a work force of over six hundred men with five mine shafts at different locations and a police post on site which obviously put them out of the league of small scale miners and yet doesn’t have a large scale mining license too of which the supervisory authorities are very much aware of but are doing nothing.

Quite apart from carting away all the gold without taxes and royalties, Shaanxi mines is arguably the most unsafe mine which has led to the death of nearly 60 people since the time it has been in operation

It is quite shocking how the sector Ministry and MinComm turned a blind eye to all activities of Shaanxi including trespassing charges and how even the then sector Minister Mr. Amewu granted the Chinese permit to mine during the nationwide ban on small scale.

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