The Volta Aluminium Company Limited (VALCO) has recorded a significant financial turnaround, posting a positive Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) of US$1.3 million for the nine months ending September 2026, compared to a loss of US$13.08 million during the same period in 2025.
This was disclosed by the Chief Executive Officer of VALCO, Dr. Robert Makila Sambian, during the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources’ Progress Series, where he presented an update on the company’s performance, achievements and future development plans.
Presenting the company’s performance, Dr. Sambian explained that revenue for the first nine months of 2026 stood at US$103.85 million, representing a 13 per cent increase over the US$91.78 million recorded during the corresponding period in 2025. The revenue performance was achieved despite challenges with production volumes.
VALCO produced 29,596 metric tonnes of aluminium during the period, against a planned target of 39,813 metric tonnes. This represented a 25.7 per cent shortfall against the target and a 13.6 per cent decline compared to the 34,254 metric tonnes produced in the same period last year.
The production setback followed an incident on June 29, 2026, which resulted in a power grid system collapse and transformer failure, causing a total electrolytic power outage lasting approximately seven hours and twenty minutes. Although the plant survived the prolonged outage, several operating cells were affected, reducing the number of stable operating cells.
Dr. Sambian indicated that management had since undertaken measures to stabilise operations, with efforts underway to increase the number of active cells and restore production capacity. The company is also targeting a gradual return to higher production levels.
As part of its efforts to improve operational efficiency, VALCO has adopted a new business model, transitioning from renting critical mobile equipment to a structured pay-to-own arrangement. This has facilitated a major injection of operational equipment into the company, including 16 lift trucks, two payloaders, a dump truck, melting furnaces, a centrifuge system and natural gas piping works.
On employment, the company recorded a workforce of 848 as of October 2026, an increase from 785 employees in December 2025. The workforce is expected to grow to approximately 1,500 when all five potlines are fully restored. The expansion is also projected to generate more than 6,000 indirect employment opportunities.
Dr. Sambian further disclosed that VALCO had secured the necessary inputs to support an increase in operating cells to 150, including 5,000 metric tonnes of imported anodes.
In advancing government’s industrialisation and value-addition agenda, VALCO has also taken a significant step towards transforming its operations through the installation of its first-ever value-addition production line, an Electrical Grade Rod Mill. The facility is currently producing electrical-grade aluminium rods for both the domestic and European markets.
The development marks an important shift in VALCO’s operations from the production of primary aluminium to the manufacture of higher-value aluminium products, strengthening Ghana’s ambition to build a competitive and integrated aluminium industry.
Looking ahead, Dr. Sambian outlined VALCO’s five-to-ten-year development vision, which seeks to transform the company into a globally competitive and fully integrated aluminium powerhouse, supported by domestic bauxite mining, alumina refining, reliable energy supply and increased value-added production.
The vision is anchored on two major pillars. The first focuses on the short-term recovery and expansion of the existing smelter, with a target of restoring all 200 active cells by 2027 and achieving an annual production capacity of 80,000 metric tonnes. It also includes plans to expand value addition, establish joint ventures, introduce scrap recycling, convert from heavy fuel oil to natural gas, install modern emissions scrubbers and undertake comprehensive plant rehabilitation.
The second pillar represents VALCO’s long-term transformational ambition of producing 1.5 million metric tonnes of primary aluminium by 2035. Dr. Sambian disclosed that Cabinet had approved the engagement of a strategic investor to facilitate the rapid turnaround and expansion of the smelter, with discussions and negotiations currently underway.
VALCO is a private company limited by shares, with all 4,285,720 issued shares held by the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC) on behalf of the Government of Ghana.
The presentation forms part of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources’ Progress Series, an initiative aimed at showcasing the achievements, ongoing projects and future plans of the Ministry and its agencies while keeping the public informed about government’s interventions in the natural resources sector.
Source: Starronline.com.gh
