Indigenous mining services provider, Engineers and Planners (E&P) Company Limited, remains poised to take over the operations of Damang Mine in the Western Region, a move that will further deepen Ghana’s long-awaited large-scale mining revolution.
A Daily Graphic search has revealed that the declaration of intent to take over the mine predates 2023, when Gold Fields signalled its decision to wind down the mine and consequently wrote to E&P, the mining contractor of the mine, to demobilise from the site.
Early positioning
The operational presence of E&P at Damang Mine places it in a unique position to assume the reins of the Damang lease after it is transferred to the state on the April 18, 2026.
Having worked extensively at the site, the company has developed deep familiarity with the mine’s geological structure, operational systems and workforce dynamics.
This institutional knowledge, combined with more than three decades of experience in Ghana’s mining services sector, makes E&P one of the few indigenous firms with the technical capacity to contemplate acquiring and operating a major gold mine.
E&P’s interest in acquiring the Damang Mine dates back to engagements that began around 2022, at a time the former was already operating as a major mining contractor, providing key operational services within the Damang mining complex.
By a letter dated November 11, 2025, detailing a checklist of recommendations for the transition and future operations of the Damang Mine, Gold Fields acknowledged E&P’s operational familiarity with the asset.
The letter, signed by the Senior Vice-President and Managing Director of Gold Fields, Elliot Twum, and copied to the Chief Executive of the Minerals Commission, Isaac Tandoh, as well as Gold Fields CEO, Mike Fraser, notes that the Ghanaian contractor possessed extensive experience working under the specific conditions at Damang.
It suggested that the company could be well positioned to support continued operations, depending on the final ownership structure adopted for the mine.
Gold Fields also highlighted the urgency of determining a future operator for the mine.
It warned that delays in confirming a new operator could create challenges in securing regulatory permits and licences, potentially disrupting operations.
Context
Gold Fields’ 30-year mining lease for Damang in the Western Region expired in 2025.
To ensure continuity and allow time for transition arrangements, the government granted a one-year extension.
The multinational mining company has since indicated that it intends to formally hand over the mine to the government on April 18, this year.
However, documents reviewed by the Daily Graphic show that long before the impending handover date, E&P had already begun positioning itself to assume control of the asset.
The review of a trail of letters, proposals and official engagements involving E&P, Gold Fields and the government indicates that the process of exploring a potential acquisition began several years ago, as part of E&P’s deliberate strategy to transition from a mining services provider into a mine owner.
Some industry experts confirmed that the sequence of events demonstrated that the Ghanaian mining contractor’s interest in Damang was neither sudden nor opportunistic.
Background
The first major turning point in the Damang timeline came in September 2023.
In a Notice of Demobilisation letter dated September 4, 2023, Gold Fields informed E&P that the company intended to wind down active mining operations at the Damang site.
The letter instructed the Ghanaian contractor to begin demobilising its mining equipment from the mine.
Gold Fields also indicated that mining of the pits would be completed by December 2023.
This meant that once the Huni and LKG pits were fully mined out by the end of 2023, no further pit mining would take place.
After that, the company planned to focus only on processing existing stockpiles until the mine reached the end of its operational life in 2025.
E&P makes bold proposal
The signal that Gold Fields was entering the final phase of its operations at Damang prompted E&P to, rather than withdraw quietly from the site, respond with a strategic proposal to dramatically alter the future trajectory of the mine.
In a letter dated September 25, 2023, addressed to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Gold Fields, the Ghanaian mining company formally requested the opportunity to purchase the Damang Mine.
The proposal represented a bold strategic shift for E&P, signalling its intention to evolve from a mining contractor into a full-scale mine owner and operator, a demonstration of confidence and ambition on the part of the Ghanaian company.
Gold Fields opens options
Four days later, on September 29, 2023, Gold Fields, through an email sent by the acting Executive Vice-President for Strategy, Strategic Planning and Corporate Development at Gold Fields, Jacob Ricciardone, indicated that the company was still assessing its strategic options regarding the future of the Damang Mine.
The acting Executive Vice-President explained that once the internal review process was completed, Gold Fields would communicate its decision to E&P.
This means, while Gold Fields had earlier instructed E&P to demobilise its equipment from the site, the company simultaneously suggested that it had not yet reached a final decision about the mine’s future ownership or operational structure.
Daily Graphic sources indicate that the apparent contradiction left the fate of the mine uncertain for several months.
Engagement with government
Determined to change the century-old narrative of mining in the country, E&P escalated its acquisition strategy by formally engaging the government in 2024, by applying for a “no objection” letter from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to engage Gold Fields to assume the reins of the Damang Mine.
This was in line with the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), which states that any transfer of mining interests or shares in a mining asset requires government approval through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
The ministry obliged and issued a “no objection” on March 12, 2024.
The letter, signed by the then Chief Director, Professor Patrick K. Agbesinyale, confirmed that the ministry had no objection to Gold Fields and E&P entering into negotiations to finalise a transaction involving the Damang asset.
That notwithstanding, the ministry emphasised that any final agreement would still require formal approval from the government.
Analysts who spoke to the Daily Graphic maintained that those procedures effectively opened the door for the two companies to proceed with negotiations towards a potential transfer of ownership.
Push for final negotiations
In a follow-up, E&P wrote again to Gold Fields CEO on December 16, 2025, reminding Gold Fields that several discussions had already taken place between officials of the two organisations regarding the proposed acquisition.
E&P maintained that during the earlier discussions, the company had been advised to secure a no-objection letter from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
Having obtained that approval in March 2024, the Ghanaian firm argued that the next logical step was to finalise negotiations on the share acquisition.
E&P, therefore, formally requested a meeting with Gold Fields to discuss the modalities of completing the transaction, subject to government approval.
However, by early 2026, E&P indicated that it had not received a response to its request.
In the latest attempt to continue negotiations, E&P, in a letter dated January 26, 2026, addressed to the Gold Fields CEO, pointed out that its earlier request for discussions on the acquisition had not been answered.
With Gold Fields planning to hand over the Damang Mine to the state on April 18, 2026, the clock is now ticking on what could become one of the most consequential moments in the history of Ghana’s mining sector.
Beyond the immediate question of Damang’s future, the broader significance lies in the possibility that an indigenous company may finally take the reins of a major, large-scale gold mine.
If that happens, industry experts say it could mark the beginning of a new chapter in Ghana’s mining history — one in which Ghanaian companies move from the margins of the industry into its commanding heights.
Further confirmation of ongoing negotiations emerged in December 2025.
In a letter dated December 8, 2025, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, confirmed that the government was aware that E&P had engaged Gold Fields regarding the acquisition of shares in the Damang Mine.
The minister also accepted a recommendation that E&P be included in the mine’s transition team.
That decision formally recognised the Ghanaian contractor as a key participant in the process of transferring Damang’s operations.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh
