According to the latest release from the General Administration of Customs, SMM statistics showed that China’s total manganese ore imports were 3.4426 million mt in January 2026, up 5.14% MoM and up 102.98% YoY. January imports by origin were Australia (601,700 mt, up 3.93% MoM), South Africa (1.963 million mt, up 12.1% MoM), Gabon (331,900 mt, down 11.61% MoM), Ghana (265,700 mt, down 21.39% MoM), Brazil (121,400 mt, up 80.69% MoM), and Myanmar (43,500 mt, down 4.56% MoM).

According to the latest release from the General Administration of Customs, SMM statistics showed that China’s total manganese ore imports in February 2026 were 2.3064 million mt, down 33.00% MoM and up 3.24% YoY. Cumulative imports in January-February were 5.749 million mt, up 46.29% YoY from the same period last year. February imports from Australia were 413,100 mt, down 31.35% MoM; South Africa 990,400 mt, down 49.55% MoM; Gabon 375,100 mt, up 13.01% MoM; Ghana 270,400 mt, up 1.78% MoM; Brazil 99,700 mt, down 17.87% MoM; and Myanmar 49,900 mt, up 14.8% MoM.

Ghanaian President Mahama announced that Ghana plans to cease exporting unprocessed ore by 2030. The President stated that this move aims to support local processing enterprises, enabling them to lead the government's flagship industrial development and job creation initiatives. On February 13, 2026, President Mahama delivered a speech in Addis Ababa, emphasizing the importance of halting the export of unprocessed resources. He advocated for enhancing the capacity of local processing enterprises to increase production and strengthen the value chain. "I declare that by 2030, Ghana will no longer export any ore. We will no longer ship unprocessed ores such as manganese ore, bauxite, or iron ore out of Ghana. All these ores must be processed locally.

[SMM Aluminum Express News] President John Dramani Mahama has reaffirmed Ghana's commitment to shifting from exporting raw minerals to becoming a competitive player in the global extractive value chain. Speaking at the Mining Local Content Summit 2026 in Takoradi (mid-February 2026), he called it unacceptable for Ghana to export raw ores while importing finished products. He set an ambitious five-year target to eliminate raw ore exports.

On December 11, the Vice President of Ghana announced that ReElement Technologies Corporation, a subsidiary of American Resources Corporation, had partnered with TECHGULF Ghana Limited in planning Africa’s first lithium processing plant in Ghana.

According to foreign media reports, Ghana Bauxite Company is expected to produce 6 million mt of bauxite by the end of 2025. To achieve this goal, the company will make a continuous investment of up to $122.97 million to upgrade facilities and improve operational efficiency.

According to foreign media reports, Ghana Bauxite Company is expected to produce 6 million mt of bauxite by the end of 2025. To achieve this goal, the company will make a continuous investment of up to $122.97 million to upgrade facilities and improve operational efficiency.

The Government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, has presented mining lease agreements for bauxite and lithium to Parliament for consideration.

According to a report on Mining.com, Newcore Gold encountered a 15-meter ore intersection at a depth of 122 meters in the Boin deposit of its Enchi project in southwestern Ghana, with a gold grade of 3.83 grams per metric ton (g/t). ◎Hole KBRC352 also intersected a 56-meter ore zone in the north-central part of the deposit, with a gold grade of 2.25 g/t. ◎Hole KBRC353 intersected a 24-meter ore zone from the surface, with a gold grade of 2.15 g/t. ◎Hole KBRC355 intersected a 29-meter ore zone at a depth of 26 meters, with a grade of 2.13 g/t. "The drilling at the Enchi project, which has covered 35,000 meters, continues to yield positive results, with the Boin deposit delivering the best ore intersections to date," said Luke Alexander, the company's President and CEO, in a press release. "The drilling has not only revealed encouraging widespread mineralization but also demonstrated excellent continuity of orebody distribution. However, the drilling has intermittently intersected ore zones with grades significantly higher than the average grade of the current resource estimate." The drilling results in the southeastern part of the Boin deposit have also been very positive. Hole KBRC344 intersected a 72-meter ore zone at a depth of 104 meters, with a grade of 1.16 g/t, including a 10-meter ore zone at 114 meters with a grade of 3.06 g/t, and a 38-meter ore zone at 190 meters with a gold grade of 1.74 g/t, including a 7-meter ore zone at 218 meters with a gold grade of 3.67 g/t. The above results are from the analysis of 17,592 meters of drilling in 142 holes at the Enchi project since the end of last year. The Enchi gold project, covering an area of 248 square kilometers, is located in the Bibiani shear zone in Ghana, where several gold deposits with multi-million-ounce resources have been discovered. These include the Chirano gold mine operated by Kinross Gold to the north and the Bibiani gold mine operated by Asante Gold to the northeast. The company stated that the current infill drilling is aimed at upgrading inferred resources to indicated resources ahead of a pre-feasibility study scheduled for later this year. The Boin deposit is one of five deposits in the Enchi project. Currently, the project has indicated ore resources of 41.7 million mt at a grade of 0.55 g/t and inferred ore resources of 46.6 million mt at a grade of 0.65 g/t. The Enchi project is located approximately 400 kilometers west of Accra, the capital of Ghana, near the border with the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire. In April last year, an updated preliminary economic assessment of the Enchi project indicated a net present value of $371 million, based on a gold price of $1,850 per ounce. The initial construction investment is estimated at $106 million. The mine is expected to have a 9-year life, with an annual ore production of 8.1 million mt from an open pit, processed through heap leaching.The full cost is $1,018 per ounce.

Ghana, with its vast bauxite reserves, is on the brink of a transformative journey.