The Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) recorded a revenue of over $120 million as of December 2025, its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Robert Sambian has disclosed.
Dr Sambian gave the figures when Labour, Jobs and Employment Minister, Dr Rashid Pelpuo visited the company on February 26, 2026.
The company currently employs 800 workers.
Pelpuo met with management and the local workers union at the Tema facility, noting the visit was part of broader efforts to understand conditions at state enterprises.
“At this time, what are we doing with VALCO? How are their workers faring? And how are the safety conditions? These are key issues that directly affect our operations as a ministry,” Pelpuo said.
The minister said government intervention can determine whether companies grow or shrink. He cited an unnamed company where government policies had caused employment to drop from 2,000 to 1,200 workers.
Pelpuo said VALCO is a key investment hub that, with government support, can lead economic growth.
He placed the visit within Ghana’s recent economic performance, saying good governance moved Ghana from number 10 to number 8 among Africa’s richest countries within one year.
“When a nation is led by a person with good conscience and a good vision, we can make it. The old conception of being smart as a Ghanaian, which means being intelligent to cheat the nation, it stops,” he said.
Pelpuo criticised past practices where public funds went missing, citing GH¢750 million borrowed for the Accra-Kumasi Road that remains unaccounted for, and $82 billion that left the country for imports that never arrived.
The minister spoke about state enterprises established under Ghana’s first president that no longer function.
“You know that the textile companies, where are they? They used to employ a lot of people. Now we are trying to revive them. The iron and steel factories, they are gone. Do you know that there was a car company in Ghana producing cars? They are not surviving. Ghana Airways, it’s gone forever. Now we want to revive it,” he said.
VALCO was founded under President Kwame Nkrumah’s vision for an integrated aluminum industry. Construction began in 1964, and commercial production started in March 1967.
The company initially produced 120,000 metric tonnes annually, with expansions in 1970 and 1974 increasing capacity to 200,000 metric tonnes.
Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation provided initial investment and technical expertise.
In 2004, facing financial difficulties, Kaiser prompted the Government of Ghana to acquire full ownership. Since 2011, VALCO has operated at reduced capacity, producing approximately 40,000 metric tonnes per year.
He said the visit aimed to assess operations and identify support needs.
“How does the company function enough to produce so you can sell, so you can get money and take care of the working population? And what kind of support would you require to operate within the framework of our economic jurisdiction. How do we help you?” he quizzed.
