• Blue Gold secured $140 million to revive the Bogoso-Prestea mine amid a legal dispute over its ownership.

• Local firms like Health GoldFields and Engineers & Planners are emerging as key players in gold mining.

• The trend reflects a regional push for stronger local participation in West Africa’s mining industry.

On November 5, Nasdaq-listed miner Blue Gold announced that it had secured $140 million to restart operations at the Bogoso-Prestea gold mine in Ghana. The asset, however, remains at the center of a dispute following its reassignment in 2024 by the government to local firm Health GoldFields. The case echoes the conflict involving Engineers & Planners (E&P) over the Black Volta project, underscoring the growing presence of national players in Ghana’s gold sector amid ownership controversies.

Local champions emerge

Bogoso-Prestea is a historic gold mine acquired by Blue Gold in 2024, which currently reports 5.1 million ounces in reserves. While the company began preparations to restart production, Ghana’s Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources revoked its mining lease in September 2024 and later reassigned the project to Health GoldFields, which now leads rehabilitation efforts, according to its official website.

Blue Gold, which continues to contest the decision, has initiated international arbitration against the Ghanaian government. Neither the authorities nor Health GoldFields have commented on the company’s new financing announcement. The dispute mirrors another case between Azumah Resources—an Australian Ibaera Capital subsidiary—and Ghanaian mining services firm E&P over the Black Volta gold project.

The two firms initially partnered under an agreement that tasked E&P with developing the mine. The partnership later collapsed, and E&P’s contract—led by Ibrahim Mahama, brother of former President John Mahama—was terminated, triggering a dispute that stalled the project. Azumah resumed construction in July 2025.

Weeks later, several Ghanaian media outlets reported that E&P had acquired Azumah and its gold portfolio, including Black Volta. Azumah swiftly denied the claims, saying it had neither sold the project nor authorized any ownership transfer. In response to the confusion, Lands and Natural Resources Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah urged both parties to reach an amicable settlement. E&P later announced in October that it had finalized Azumah’s acquisition for $100 million, though Ibaera Capital’s official website has yet to confirm the deal.

A regional trend

E&P has positioned itself as a defender of national interests in a gold industry dominated by foreign companies such as Newmont (U.S.) and AngloGold Ashanti (South Africa). Although the Bogoso-Prestea case differs in nature, it reflects the same rise of domestic players like Health GoldFields, even as the outcome remains uncertain. These developments align with a broader wave of local content policies across West Africa.

In Mali, the 2023 Mining Code grants local investors up to 5% stakes in mining projects. Similarly, in Guinea, the government in August 2025 awarded bauxite mining rights to the new state-owned Nimba Mining Company (NMC) after withdrawing the permit from Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) following months of tension.

In Ghana, the government’s next moves are being closely watched, particularly regarding Bogoso-Prestea. Blue Gold has stated it is willing to drop arbitration if the lease dispute is resolved immediately. Meanwhile, Health GoldFields continues investing in the mine’s reopening, noting that Minister Kofi Buah visited the site in September.

E&P has yet to release a timeline for developing Black Volta. According to a 2020 feasibility study by Azumah, the project could produce an average of 163,000 ounces of gold per year during its first five years, with construction costs estimated at $147 million.