Gold Fields Ghana formally handed over the Damang Mine concession to Engineers and Planners Limited on 18 April in a ceremony in the Western Region. Minister of Lands and Natural Resources Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah officiated. The transfer ends Gold Fields' 30-year tenure at the site and places a major Gold Belt asset under wholly Ghanaian ownership.

The Minerals Commission opened a competitive tender after Gold Fields' mining lease expired in April 2025 and the government declined to renew it, granting instead a one-year transitional lease for orderly handover. Four companies bid: Engineers and Planners, Heath Goldfields, Vortex Resources Mining Group, and Maripoma Mining Services. Vortex and Maripoma were eliminated at Phase 1 screening. Heath Goldfields advanced but failed the technical scoring minimum. Engineers and Planners scored 93.15 percent, the highest and sole qualifying finalist.

The money

The minimum funding threshold was $500 million. Engineers and Planners demonstrated access to $505 million.

A $205 million syndicated loan was arranged in February 2026 by Stanbic Bank Ghana and Standard Bank of South Africa, with Ecobank Ghana and Absa Bank Ghana as participating lenders. The five-year senior secured facility, structured in two tranches of $110 million and $95 million, covers expansion at both Damang and E&P's existing Tarkwa mining operations. A separate $120 million facility from EBID backs the acquisition of the Black Volta Gold Project from Australia's Azumah Resources, a deal that began in October 2023.

The mine

Damang has been operational since November 1997 and has produced over 4 million ounces of gold cumulatively. Remaining reserves as of December 2025 stand at 3.55 million ounces. Future capacity is estimated at 100,000 to 150,000 ounces annually for approximately nine more years. The workforce exceeds 2,000 employees at Damang alone, with more than 4,000 across E&P's combined Tarkwa and Damang operations. A presidential directive guarantees zero layoffs.

The pledges

Ibrahim Mahama, E&P's CEO and founder, pledged an airport at Damang within six months, a concrete road from Damang to Cape Coast within two years, two large hospitals, and astroturf pitches for surrounding communities. He said he wants to prove that Ghanaians can invest in themselves and that the Damang plan is not a joke.

The political question

Ibrahim Mahama is President Mahama's younger brother. The opposition NPP accused the government of orchestrating a predetermined process and announced plans to petition CHRAJ. Concerns were raised about the evaluation speed, reportedly completed within seven days. Separately, the President's reported use of Ibrahim's private jet on official travel was cited as a potential conflict of interest under Article 284 of the 1992 Constitution.