Engineers & Planners (E&P), the Ghanaian engineering and mining firm owned by business mogul Ibrahim Mahama, has issued a detailed statement urging the public to disregard a circulating letter that seeks to dissociate Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd from the recent signing ceremony of a $100 million acquisition deal.
The statement, signed by Mr. Emmanuel Erskine, Business Development Director of E&P, describes the letter as unsigned by any Azumah director and instead authored by a London-based PR agency.
E&P warns that signing such a letter would constitute contempt of court, implying the letter’s illegitimacy and intent to mislead the public.
Background of the Azumah Resources deal
Azumah Resources, a gold concession holder in Ghana’s Upper West Region since 1992, had struggled to commence significant exploration activities over three decades, contrary to its lease agreement terms. By 2022, the company, owned by an Australian firm, was indebted to the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Minerals Commission by over $5 million, with court judgments obtained against it and asset sales imminent.
Due to low gold prices and regional political instability, especially in neighboring Burkina Faso, Azumah’s shareholders sought to sell the project. In May 2023, they approached E&P with an offer to sell the project for $100 million, a figure above the project’s estimated value of less than $80 million. E&P accepted the offer and the associated risks.
The Project Acquisition and Development Agreement was signed on October 9, 2023, at E&P’s Roman Ridge offices in Accra. The payment terms stipulated two equal installments of $50 million each, initially due in June 2024 and June 2026, with the first payment deadline later extended to December 31, 2024, by mutual agreement.
Addressing the controversy
E&P’s statement challenges the authenticity and motives behind the letter dissociating Azumah from the signing ceremony. It questions why, if Azumah had terminated the agreement in December 2024 as alleged, it was still accepting payments from E&P in June 2025 to cover salaries and project expenses.
The company accuses critics, notably Bright Simons and James Wallbank, of orchestrating noise to prevent E&P from securing financing for the deal. E&P asserts that once financing is secured, Azumah’s shareholders will have no choice but to accept payment per the agreement
E&P confirms it has obtained a No Objection Letter from the Minerals Commission to acquire the mine and will proceed with the financing process through the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID).
The company plans to commence development activities immediately, aiming for first production within 36 months.
The statement calls on Ghanaians to support domestic enterprises and reject attempts by individuals described as “mercenaries” to derail what it terms a historic transaction, the first time a wholly Ghanaian-owned company is acquiring a large-scale gold mine.
E&P emphasizes that the transaction is purely commercial and not politically motivated, urging the public to focus on the economic benefits for Ghana.
Read the full statement
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
The Story of Azumah – The lies exposed:
1. The government of Ghana gave a lease to Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd in respect of a gold concession in the Upper West Region in 1992. The company is owned by an Australian company.
2. From 1992 till 2022, the company was unable to commence any significant exploration activities on the land, contrary to the termns of the lease agreement.
3. By 2022, the company was indebted to the GHANA REVENUE AUTHORITY and Minerals Commission more than over $5million.
4. The Ghana Revenue Authority had obtained a judgment in both the High Court and the Court of Appeal against the company and was going to sell the assets of the company.
5. Gold price was low and so the owners of the company wanted to sell what was left of the company and for the new owner to deal with all the risk with GRA, Minerals Commission and falling gold prices.
6. Besides, the political instability in neighbouring Burkina Faso made it unattractive for any more investments in that part of the country.
7. In May 2023, the shareholders approached E&P, offering to sell the project to E&P for $100,000,000.00
8. E&P accepted the offer and the risk, despite the value of the project being less than S 80
million.
9. The Project Acquisition and Development Agreement was signed by the shareholders of
Azumah and E&P in October 2023.
10. Per the agreement, the entire $100,000,000.00 was to be paid by June 2026 with the first
payment in June 2024 and 2nd payment in June 2026.
11. By an email exchange between the parties, the first instalment of June 2024 was amended to December 31, 2024.
3. If indeed Azumah had terminated the agreement in December 2024, why was Azumah still taking
money from E&P in June 2025 to pay salaries and other project expenses?
4. The letter making rounds dissociating Azumah from the signing ceremony was not signed by any director of Azumah. It was signed by a PR agency based in London. The only reason why no
director of Azumah could sign the purported letter is because they know that it will amount to
contempt of court.
WHY ALL THE NOISE
1. All the noise orchestrated by Bright Simons and James Wallbank and their stooges is to ensure that E&P does not get the money to pay the shareholders of Azumah. They know that once E&P can raise the financing, the Shareholders have no option but to accept the payment as per the
agreement.
THE WAY FORWARD
1. E&P has already obtained the No Objection Letter from the Minerals Commission to acquire
the mine,
2. E&P will continue with the process in line with the agreement for EBID to make payment to the shareholders of Azumah.
3. E&P will commence development activities at the mine and do well to see the first production within 36 months.
4. Ghanaians should support their own and not allow people who have become mercenaries to divert attention from this historic project, the first time ever for a wholly owned Ghanaian company to acquire a large scale mine.
5. This is not politics. This is a pure commercial transaction on an am’s length basis.
6. God bless our homeland Ghana
Signed by Mr. Emmanuel Erskine
Business Development Director.
