ALUWORKS Limited has rolled out a restructuring project aimed at expanding its production capacity to 50,000 metric tonnes of aluminium products per annum.
An agreement to that effect has been signed with a Chinese firm, Zhuoshen Non Ferrous Metals Plant and Equipment Company Limited, for the installation of a modern cold rolling mill to improve productivity.
Aluworks, the only casting and rolling mill in the country, currently produces 30,000 tonnes of aluminium products.
The project, being funded by the majority shareholder, the Social Security and National Investment Trust (SSNIT), at a cost of $10 million, is expected to be completed in 24 months.
According to the Managing Director of Aluworks, Mr Kwasi Okoh, the existing mill had become inefficient and would require full rehabilitation to improve its productivity.
“Presently, 45 per cent of our products are traditionally exported to most West African countries, hence our drive to scale up productivity to solidify our hold on the rest of the market,” he told the Daily Graphic in an interview.
He said when the project was completed, it would also consolidate Aluworks’ market share across the West African sub-region.
Mr Okoh, however, expressed disappointment at the continuous influx of Chinese and Indian aluminium trading enterprises into Ghana and Nigeria.
“Chinese flat rolled aluminium products are imported, stocked and vended to companies in the West African sub-region,” he said.
“Not only do the foreign companies abuse the ECOWAS Trade Protocol; they also employ the services of Ghanaians as board members and consultants to help them perpetuate such illegalities,” he said.
Mr Okoh, therefore, appealed to the government to halt the invasion in order to promote local industrial growth and also arrest incidents of joblessness among the youth.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Aluworks, Mr Kwadwo Kwarteng, said the company was contending with serious competition that emanated from the Far East.
He said following the growth in Ghana’s economy, officials were confident that there would be greater demand for aluminium products in future.
“It is for this reason that we deem it necessary to position ourselves better to be able to meet demand,” he said.
The Executive Director of Zhuoshen Non Ferrous Metals Plant and Equipment Company Limited, Mr Sun Shuting, who signed on behalf of his company, expressed the hope that the partnership between the two companies would be a win-win situation for the two entities.
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