Economic Potential of Salt Mining in Ghana Towards the Oil Find

摘要

The objective of this research is to give an overview of Ghana's salt industry and how the industry can maximize from the oil find through increased salt production and value addition. Ghana is endowed with commercial quantities of common salt, which have not been fully exploited to effectively contribute to the country's economic growth. With the discovery of oil in commercial quantities, currently in excess of 300 million barrels of recoverable crude oil, the prospect for the salt industry to grow is keener. From the four or more methods available for salt production, solar techniques involving both modern and traditional methods appear to be widely used in Ghana as a result of favourable climatic conditions. Out of the production potential of between 2 to 3 million tonnes per annum, just about 10% (about 250,000 tonnes) is produced annually. The quality of salt was examined by sampling all the production locations along the over 500 km coast line. Test results showed that some impurity levels were high. Concentrations of copper and cadmium levels were fund to exceed recommended threshold levels. This study calls for improvements in the current salt production system and diversification into value addition to broaden the benefits of Ghana's oil find.