The Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC) has dismissed reports suggesting that the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) has been sold, insisting instead that government is pursuing a strategic equity partnership to modernise and expand the smelter while retaining significant ownership and control.
In a statement dated Tuesday, January 20, 2026, GIADEC described claims of a sale as false and misleading.
“The Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC) wishes to categorically state that reports suggesting the sale of the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) are false,” the statement said.
According to GIADEC, the government, through the corporation, has shortlisted a strategic equity investor as part of efforts to retrofit and expand VALCO’s operations.
The partnership, it explained, is aimed at securing capital and technical expertise to modernise the smelter, increase production, protect existing jobs and contribute to Ghana’s industrial growth.
The corporation stressed that the arrangement does not involve relinquishing control of VALCO but rather a partial equity ceding in exchange for investment and technology.
“The strategy involves a partial equity ceding arrangement that will provide liquidity while ensuring the Government, through GIADEC, retains significant ownership and strategic control to drive future growth,” the statement noted.
As part of the proposed modernisation, GIADEC said VALCO’s annual production capacity is expected to increase sharply from its current 40,000 tonnes to 300,000 tonnes within 36 months after the project begins.
The initiative is also projected to safeguard existing jobs and create thousands of new direct and indirect employment opportunities.
“The core objectives are to significantly increase production capacity from the current 40,000 tonnes to 300,000 tonnes annually within a period of 36 months,” GIADEC stated.
The corporation explained that the move forms a central pillar of Ghana’s broader plan to develop a fully integrated aluminium industry, covering bauxite mining, alumina refining, aluminium smelting and downstream manufacturing.
GIADEC further disclosed that the decision to seek a strategic equity investor follows Cabinet approval granted in June 2022 after an independent technical and financial assessment by KPMG recommended equity investment as the most viable option to revive the smelter.
“An independent comprehensive technical and financial assessment conducted by KPMG in 2022 recommended equity investment as the most commercially viable and legally sound option for reviving the smelter,” the statement said.
It added that a recent review of VALCO’s 2025 financial position highlighted the urgent need for the partnership to halt further decline and restore productivity.
In 2025, a 12-member cross-sectoral committee made up of representatives from GIADEC, VALCO and relevant ministries was set up to assess proposals from interested investors.
GIADEC said the committee operated under strict national development criteria, including job retention, expansion with modern technology, value addition and alignment with the government’s 24-hour economy policy.
Reiterating government’s position, GIADEC stressed, “The Government has no intention to sell VALCO.”
The corporation assured workers that the partnership would not result in job losses but would instead improve working conditions and expand employment opportunities.
