Ghana tightens gold exports in push to keep more value at home

Effective September 1, the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) barred Self-Financing Aggregators (SFAs) from exporting gold dore purchased under arrangements with approved offtakers unless it is first refined in Ghana.

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Dore is semi-refined gold that requires further processing before it can be turned into bullion.

The directive, issued by GoldBod’s Compliance Directorate on August 24, implements the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140), which established GoldBod as the authority overseeing the buying, selling, assaying, refining and export of gold in Ghana.

For Clement Edem Asare Morjah, chief executive of United Gold International Limited, a licensed SFA, the policy marks a significant change in how Ghana handles its most valuable natural resource.

Morjah said refining gold locally could allow Ghanaian companies to capture margins that have historically gone to overseas processors.

But he added the short notice had created challenges for companies with existing contracts, which may now have to be amended.

GoldBod had required SFAs to amend existing offtake agreements by August 31. Export applications would only be processed after GoldBod confirms that the gold has been refined locally, applicable charges have been settled and other regulatory requirements have been met.

Prince Kwame Minkah, GoldBod’s media relations officer, said the policy was intended to ensure Ghana captured more of the economic benefits from its gold.

He said the policy was consistent with President John Mahama’s vision that, by 2030, Ghana’s natural resources should be exported with a certain level of value addition.

Local refining, he added, could create jobs, reduce the amount of money paid overseas for processing and provide refined gold for industries such as jewellery manufacturing.

GoldBod also plans to develop a gold village modelled on Dubai’s Gold Souk, he said.

Ghana has four licensed gold refineries, including Gold Coast Refinery and Royal Ghana Gold Refinery.

Gold Coast Refinery, which opened in 2016, has a stated capacity of up to two tonnes a week, while Royal Ghana Gold Refinery, commissioned in August 2024, has a daily capacity of 400 kilogrammes (882 pounds).

GoldBod has supply agreements with both refineries. Under its agreement with Gold Coast Refinery, GoldBod supplies at least one metric tonne of gold a week.

Gold Coast Refinery is also in partnership with South Africa’s Rand Refinery.

Minkah said GoldBod was building what he described as “the largest refinery on the African continent” in Ghana.

Ghana produced nearly six million ounces, or about 185 tonnes, of gold in 2025, with small-scale mining accounting for about 3. 1 million ounces (96 tonnes), up from 1.

9 million ounces (59 tonnes) the previous year.

The surge has increased the government’s focus on bringing more of the gold value chain under domestic control.

George Darkwa, a gold and mineral expert, said the refining requirement was a positive development for the industry.

GoldBod said exporting, or attempting to export, unrefined dore in breach of the new requirements would violate licence conditions.

Possible sanctions include the refusal or suspension of export approvals, suspension or revocation of licences, administrative penalties and other enforcement measures.

The board said the directive was intended to strengthen regulation while retaining more domestic value through refining and other forms of value addition.

For Morjah, the benefits could eventually extend beyond the companies directly affected by the new rule.

Once refined, gold becomes bullion that can meet recognised standards, he said, making its quality and value more predictable.

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