From Left to Right: General Manager of Eletrochem, David Cameron, Director McDan Group/Electrochem Ghana, Dzigbordi Kwaku, the Paramount Chief of Ada, Nene Abram Kabu Akuaku III and Chairman Mr Daniel Mckorley.

Electrochem lease: McDan addresses concerns of Ada residents

Kweku Zurek Business News May - 15 - 2021 , 16:20

The Chairman of Electrochem Ghana Limited, Mr Daniel McKorley has assured residents of communities located around the Ada Songor Salt Project that they will not be excluded from exploiting the salt resource in the Songor lagoon.

According to Mr McKorley, the company has out of goodwill constructed special pans which would be set aside for the locals to mine safely without destroying the environment.

He said when completed, the pans would be operated by the communities located around the Songor Lagoon and produce over 500,000 bags (eight-kilogramme bags) of salt each year and end the illegal and environmentally harmful mining of salt known locally as atsiakpo.

"A lot of people don't know but the community pans that we have created which we would also fill with brine when complete and this would produce 500,000 bags of salt which is more than what they get with the atsiakpo," Mr Mckorley said last Friday after a tour of the 41,000-acre Electrochem concession by members of the Ada Traditional Council led by the Paramount Chief of Ada, Nene Abram Kabu Akuaku III.

Expressing gratitude to the Chiefs and people of Ada for supporting the project, Mr McKorley further assured that all communities located around the lagoon would benefit from the construction of the pans.

Communities that would benefit from the pans include Bonikope, Avakpe, Toflokpo and Kposem.

Jobs

Mr McKorley also disclosed that over 1,000 indigenes of Ada had already been employed in various capacities at the concession in four months.

He further disclosed that when the salt mine becomes fully operational, over 6,000 direct and indirect jobs would be created.

Electrochem was granted a 15-year mining lease to exploit salt resource in the Songor lagoon and surrounding communities by Parliament in October 2020.

Excitement

On his part, Nene Abram Kabu Akuaku III said the development the members of the Council had seen at the mine had exceeded their expectations and filled them with excitement.

He pledged the support of the Council for the project, urging the youth to work to ensure that it was a success.

He also urged members of communities located around the lagoon who may still have some concerns to use dialogue to resolve those issues because the success of the mine would bring development to the area.