BoG increases its gold reserves by 7.70 tonnes.

According to Dr. Ernest Addison, Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), the country’s reserves at the end of last month included 7.70 tonnes of gold.

The move, which is a component of the domestic gold purchase program (DGPP) of the central bank, aims to increase the amount of gold held in the nation’s reserves as an asset cover in order to add further protection for the economy against potential shocks. BoG

Dr. Addison discussed the effects and advantages of the DGPP at the Takoradi 2023 Gold Expo last Saturday. He noted that at the program’s beginning in June 2021, the goal was to double the central bank’s gold holdings, which were 8.77 tonnes at the time, in five years. BoG

According to the Daily Graphic’s estimation, the 7.70 tonnes of gold might be worth more than $485 million using the spot price of gold as of yesterday, which was $63,000 per kilogram.

With this addition, the nation’s gold reserves now total 16.47 tonnes.

“I am pleased to announce that, as of June 30, 2023, the central bank had added more than 7.70 tonnes of monetary gold to the gold reserves since the inception of the DGPP program in June 2021,” Dr. Addison remarked.

According to the governor, mining companies supplied around 80% of the gold in the reserve, and the remaining 20% came from the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) industry through an authorized aggregator. BoG

Golden Expo

The Western Regional Coordinating Council, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, mining firms, and services are supporting the Ghana Mining Expo 2023, a forum designed to encourage dialogue among those with an interest in the mining sector.

The goal of the expo was to increase investor interest and promote safe and ethical mining.

This year’s subject, “Sustainable Mineral Resources Development and the Well-being in Mining Communities,” gave stakeholders a forum for discussion, consideration, and the presentation of success stories.

The growth

By the end of the year, the nation’s gold reserves will more than double, according to Dr. Addison, who added that “we are well ahead of the target initially set.”

According to him, the gold purchase program offers a singular opportunity to refine the gold purchased and therefore organically increase the nation’s foreign exchange reserves without undermining the motivations of domestic gold producers.

The program, according to the governor, may, in the medium to long term, serve the central bank’s mandate for price stability if the additional Ghana cedi liquidity from the domestic gold purchases was removed through open market operations. BoG

As the BoG purchased gold from them at reasonable prices, the DGPP also supports the ASM industry, according to Dr. Addison.

The Governor stated, “This doré gold is stockpiled and transported to LBMA citified refineries that refine the Dore gold to London Gold Refinery Base.”

A semi-pure gold and silver alloy known as a doré bar.

Typically, it is produced at the mine site and then transferred to a refinery for additional purification.

Benefits

Dr. Addison stated that the BoG had created a responsible sourcing and due diligence framework for the DGPP in collaboration with consultants, Positive Impact Sarl (Geneva), Aurum Global Partners, and the Ghana Gold Expo Foundation. This framework was expected to advance the process by encouraging ethical and sustainable mining in the domestic ASM sector.

The Governor also stated that the additional gold reserves would help to diversify reserve assets and boost the reserve portfolio’s risk-adjusted returns.

In addition, Dr. Addison stated that the central bank would use its gold holdings to obtain money for foreign exchange liquidity management at competitive rates, adding that “the DGP programme has the potential to catalyze investments in the country’s gold mining sector.”

The Governor stated that the nation’s local refineries were also putting themselves in a position to benefit from rising industry investments and boosting revenue from better value-adding in gold exports.

G4O endeavor

According to Governor Addison, the Gold for Oil (G4O) initiative continued to use the DGPP of the current bank.

According to him, it is set up so that gold is bought from authorized small-scale miners by the Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC), and community mining schemes are used to subsidize the importation of petroleum products.

“The G4O introduction was critical during the recent economic crisis, especially in the last quarter of 2022,” said Dr. Addison.

He highlighted how the crisis had an impact on the foreign exchange market, causing very significant changes in the exchange rate as well as distorted forward exchange rate quotes that were used to determine the price of gasoline.

In order to secure cheaper fuel from G4O agreements, government engagement to directly engage oil producers became essential.

It became apparent that using the BoG’s gold for reserves initiative to boost oil investment would be beneficial, according to Dr. Addison.

The Governor stated that “these encouraging developments have helped to ease price pressures and support the central bank’s efforts to bring down the high inflation levels.”

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