The Minerals Commission has suspended the reconnaissance licences of Gold Coast GRC Ghana Limited, directing the company to immediately halt all activities being undertaken under its licences within Ghana’s territorial waters.
The suspension, communicated in a letter dated October 5, 2026, and signed by the Chief Executive of the Minerals Commission, Isaac Tandoh, follows growing objections from key stakeholders over the potential environmental and ecological impacts of the proposed offshore gold exploration, as well as concerns about the adequacy of consultations with affected communities. The letter was copied to the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah Kofi-Buah, his Deputy, Sulemana Yussif, and Chief Director Innocent Haligah.
The Suspension Directive
The Commission’s letter stated that Gold Coast GRC Ghana Limited was granted reconnaissance licences on February 9, 2026, covering areas within Ghana’s territorial waters. As indicated in an earlier letter dated February 4, 2026, which communicated the Ministerial approval of the Commission’s recommendation to grant the licences, the company was required to obtain all necessary authorisations, permits and approvals from the relevant State institutions before commencing any exploration-related activities.
“The Commission has, however, subsequently received representations from key stakeholders raising concerns and objections regarding the grant of the mineral rights and the activities proposed under the licences,” the letter read. “The concerns raised relate principally to the potential environmental and ecological impacts of the proposed operations, as well as the adequacy of consultations with individuals, communities and other groups who may be affected by the Company’s activities”.
The Commission said that in view of these concerns, and unless the matters raised are adequately addressed, the proposed operations may be subject to regulatory challenges and may not obtain the necessary social licence to operate. “It is therefore considered necessary to temporarily suspend all activities to allow the relevant regulatory, environmental, ecological and social concerns to be properly assessed, considered and addressed through appropriate stakeholder engagement and consultation”.
The letter stated that the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources has directed the immediate suspension of all activities being undertaken under the licences. The suspension shall remain in effect until the Commission has completed the necessary consultations and issued the requisite written Ministerial authorisation for the resumption of activities. During this period, the company is required to cooperate fully with the Commission, other relevant State institutions and all affected stakeholders.
The directive does not revoke the reconnaissance licences but places activities under them on hold pending further regulatory and stakeholder engagement. Activities can only resume after the Commission has completed the necessary consultations and issued written ministerial authorisation.
The Company and Its Licences
GoldCoast Resource Corp. is a Toronto-headquartered gold exploration company focused on a 10,000 square kilometre shallow-water placer gold concession on Ghana’s western offshore continental shelf. The company’s subsidiary, Goldcoast GRC Ghana Ltd., is 90% owned by the parent company, with a local partner in Ghana holding 10%.
The company holds a series of ten contiguous offshore reconnaissance licences granted by the Minerals Commission of Ghana covering approximately 10,000 square kilometres along Ghana’s western offshore continental shelf. The licences have an initial term of 12 months and may be renewed in accordance with Ghanaian regulations, expiring on February 8, 2027.
GoldCoast controls approximately 53 percent of Ghana’s offshore coastline, a position described by industry observers as unique. The company is chaired by Sir Sam Jonah, the Ghanaian mining executive and former CEO of Ashanti Goldfields, who brings decades of experience in the African gold mining industry.
GoldCoast had completed about 50,000 line-kilometres of airborne magnetic surveying and identified a priority exploration target of approximately 500 square kilometres around the mouth of the Ankobra River. Preliminary coastal sampling produced what the company described as encouraging indications of gold, including visible gold in samples collected along sections of the coast. The company had outlined plans for further exploration, including seaborne surveys, vibrocore drilling and bulk sampling, with possible near-shore shallow-water dredging in a later phase.
Fisheries Commission Raised Red Flag
The suspension follows a formal protest from the Fisheries Commission. In a letter to the Chief Executive Officer of the Minerals Commission dated September 29, 2026, the Executive Director of the Fisheries Commission, Professor Benjamin Betey Campion, said the documents supporting the licence did not adequately consider the marine environment, fishing activities and the livelihoods of communities that depend on Ghana’s coastal waters.
Professor Campion said the documents appeared to have been prepared largely from the perspective of land-based mining, and that the Fisheries Commission was not meaningfully involved in the assessment and planning of the project, despite the proposed activity taking place entirely offshore. He pointed to several sections of the licence documents which, in his view, did not reflect conditions at sea — including references to hunting game, gathering firewood and collecting snails, which are activities associated with land-based areas.
He also questioned the environmental information used in preparing the programme, saying the assessment focused heavily on land features such as vegetation, climate and relief, while giving inadequate attention to seabed conditions, oceanography, water quality and marine habitats. He further raised concerns about marine safety and the risks associated with operating vessels in areas where fishing activities are already taking place, calling for consideration of “possible interactions between exploration vessels and fishing boats, marine pollution, underwater noise, weather conditions, emergency evacuation and search and rescue”.
Professor Campion called for the matter to be reviewed jointly by relevant institutions, including the Minerals Commission, Environmental Protection Authority, Ghana Maritime Authority, Water Resources Commission and Petroleum Commission. “An offshore reconnaissance programme of this magnitude represents a significant intervention in Ghana’s marine space. It is therefore essential that the regulatory and scientific processes supporting the activity are fit for purpose, marine-specific, evidence-based, precautionary and consistent with Ghana’s obligations concerning sustainable use and protection of its aquatic resources,” he wrote.
NAFAG Petition
The National Fisheries Association of Ghana (NAFAG) also petitioned President Mahama on October 6, 2026, calling for the suspension of the licence pending further consultations with the fishing industry. The association, which represents five major fisheries groups, raised concerns about the size of the licensed area, stakeholder consultation, and the application of fisheries and environmental safeguards.
NAFAG said the company’s published map appeared to indicate that parts of the licensed area could fall within the Inshore Exclusion Zone (IEZ), which extends up to 12 nautical miles from the coastline. The association also raised concerns about the proximity of the licensed area to Greater Cape Three Points, where Ghana launched its first Marine Protected Area at Busua on April 14, 2026.
Legal Questions Under Act 703
A coalition of civil society organisations had also raised questions about whether the activities proposed under the reconnaissance licences were permissible under Ghanaian law. The CSOs cited Section 32(3) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), as amended, which they said prohibited holders of reconnaissance licences from drilling or excavating. They also referenced Section 99(6) of the Act, which they said made it an offence to use a floating platform or other equipment for mining or dredging to obtain minerals in Ghana’s natural water bodies, including the territorial sea, exclusive economic zone, and continental shelf.
Wider Governance Concerns
The suspension comes against the backdrop of a wider global push to expand protection of marine and terrestrial ecosystems under the “30×30” conservation target, which seeks to conserve at least 30 percent of the world’s land and ocean by 2030. The 30×30 Global Assessment Report indicates that Ghana’s marine and coastal protected or conserved coverage stands at about 0.01 percent, among the lowest levels identified globally.
Maritime expert Dr. Samuel Dotse added a legal and ocean-governance perspective, arguing that the controversy raised a broader question about whether a regulatory framework designed largely around terrestrial mining was adequate for major extractive activities in the marine environment. He proposed an Inter-Agency Marine Environmental Assessment and Ocean Governance Mechanism involving the relevant regulatory institutions, coordinating marine baseline studies, cumulative-impact assessments, stakeholder consultation, monitoring and mitigation. He summed up his position with the principle: “assessment before authorization, coordination before conflict, and prevention before remediation”.
What’s Next
GoldCoast GRC Ghana Limited must now refrain from undertaking any activities under the affected licences until the required consultations have been concluded and the necessary written authorisation for resumption has been issued. The company is required to cooperate fully with the Commission, other relevant State institutions and all affected stakeholders in addressing the concerns raised and ensuring that all applicable regulatory, environmental and social requirements are duly satisfied.
The immediate issue is whether the concerns raised by fisheries authorities and other stakeholders can be addressed sufficiently for the company to resume its offshore exploration programme. For now, the company must keep all activities under the licences suspended until the Commission completes its consultations and written ministerial authorisation is issued for operations to resume.
