Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd has suggested that greed among some former investors of the company is driving them to seek additional payments after receiving US$100 million under an agreement that transferred their debt and equity interests in the Black Volta Gold Project to the Ghanaian mining firm, Engineers & Planners (E&P).
The company said documents in its possession show that the former investors, including Ghanaian Exploration Manager Prince Ofori Amponsah and Australian directors James Henry Brett Wallbank and Jonathan Mark Andrew Hronsky, resigned from the company after E&P completed payment of the agreed acquisition price.
According to Azumah, shortly after receiving the US$100 million and other monies held in the company’s Ghanaian bank accounts, two of the former investors initiated fresh proceedings before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), seeking additional payments contrary to the settlement agreements executed between the parties.
The same Australians who had allegedly abandoned the mine and were going to sell it for less than US$100 million to E&P shot up the price after the global gold price rose, chasing a Chinese interest. Interestingly, ahead of that, E&P was paying a whopping US$500,000 per month into the Azumah Resources Accounts for staff remuneration and other administrative costs.
The Black Volta Gold Project is located in the Wa West District of the Upper West Region, near Ghana’s border with Burkina Faso. The project comprises mining concessions held by Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd, Upwest Resources Ltd and Phoenix Resources Ltd.
The allegations were contained in a statement issued yesterday, Thursday, July 9, 2026, by the Chairman of Azumah Resources, Noel Addo, in response to reports published by Semafor Africa and Myjoyonline.com claiming that E&P had ignored a court order requiring it to relinquish control of the Black Volta Gold Project pending the determination of legal proceedings.
The dispute centres on ownership and control of the Black Volta and Sankofa gold concessions in Ghana’s Upper West Region, involving E&P and former investors identified as IGIC PTY, Cangol PTY and Azumah Resources Australia Ltd.
Mr Addo said the parties had negotiated a settlement agreement under which E&P agreed to pay US$100 million for both the debt and equity interests held by the former investors.
He said the arrangement was confirmed in an email dated August 15, 2025, from the investors’ lawyer, which stated: “I confirm that the total purchase price for the loans and the shares is $100 million.”
According to the statement, E&P subsequently paid the full amount and also transferred all funds held in Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd’s Ghanaian bank accounts back to the former investors’ overseas accounts.
The company said that following the completion of those payments, all directors appointed by the investors resigned from the board.
Azumah disclosed copies of resignation letters submitted by Mr Amponsah and the two Australian directors.
Mr Amponsah, in a letter dated October 16, 2025, resigned with immediate effect as Exploration Manager.
In his letter addressed to the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Noel Addo, he thanked the company for the opportunity to work and consult for Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd, saying he had gained valuable professional experience during his tenure and wished the company well.
Mr Wallbank resigned as a director with effect from September 15, 2025, pursuant to Section 157 of the Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992). In his resignation letter, he confirmed that he had notified the Company Secretary and declared that he had no claim against the company other than accrued entitlements due before his departure.
Mr Hronsky also resigned as a director with effect from the same date under Section 157 of Act 992, similarly confirming compliance with the statutory notification requirements and stating that he had no claims against the company beyond accrued entitlements.
Mr Addo rejected reports suggesting that E&P had ignored a court order requiring it to hand over the Black Volta Project.
He maintained that neither the ICC tribunal nor the High Court in London had issued any order directing that the project be returned to the former investors.
“There is no order by any Arbitration Tribunal or High Court ordering that the Black Volta Project be handed over to the former investors,” he said.
“We challenge those behind the publication of this falsehood to produce any order or award which requires that the Black Volta Project should be handed over to the former investors.”
The company acknowledged that the former investors had obtained an ex parte order from the High Court in England dated June 10, 2026, directing E&P to cease interfering with the Black Volta and Sankofa mine sites, restore access to company facilities and IT systems, and return admini
strative control of Azumah’s Office365 email server and domain.
However, Mr Addo said the order expressly permitted E&P to apply to have it set aside within 14 days and stated that it was not enforceable until such an application had been determined.
According to the statement, E&P has already filed an application to set aside the order, supported by a statement from Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd confirming that all assets associated with the Black Volta Project remain under the custody and control of the Ghanaian company.
He noted that the High Court in England had yet to fix a hearing date for the application.
“The publication by Myjoyonline.com suggesting that E&P has failed to comply with the order is therefore inaccurate and misleading and should be ignored,” the statement said.
Mr Addo further argued that no tribunal or court could order Ghana’s mineral rights to be transferred contrary to the Constitution, since the concessions had been granted by the Government of Ghana to Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd, Upwest Resources Ltd and Phoenix Resources Ltd.
He also referred to an interim award delivered by the ICC tribunal on September 19, 2025, in which the tribunal declined to unwind corporate decisions relating to changes in directorships, officers or shareholding within the Azumah Group.
According to the statement, the tribunal held that reversing such corporate decisions would be inappropriate at the interim stage of the proceedings.
Mr Addo said the ruling effectively confirmed E&P’s acquisition of the shares in Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd and Upwest Resources Ltd.
Azumah further disputed claims that the US$100 million acquisition related solely to equity.
The company said the 2023 Framework Agreement expressly provided that the consideration covered both debt and equity interests in the companies owning the Black Volta Project.
It quoted Clause F of the agreement, which states that in consideration of the US$100 million payment, IGIC, Azumah Resources Australia and Cangol agreed that E&P would acquire all their respective debt and equity interests in Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd and Upwest Resources Ltd.
The company maintained that despite receiving the agreed consideration and other funds, the former investors subsequently initiated fresh claims before the ICC seeking additional payments beyond the settlement agreement.
Azumah said those claims were being contested.
The company added that the Black Volta Project remains under the management and control of the boards of Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd, Upwest Resources Ltd and Phoenix Resources Ltd, while E&P continues to be the sole shareholder exercising its rights under the acquisition agreement.
Meanwhile, The Herald also sighted a letter from the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) confirming the disbursement of a US$100 million loan facility to Engineers & Planners Company Limited (E&P) to support the Black Volta Gold Project in Ghana.
The confirmation was contained in a letter dated October 8, 2025, signed by the President of EBID, Dr George Agyekum Donkor, and addressed to the Chief Executive Officer of E&P, Mr Ibrahim Mahama.
The letter stated that the disbursement was made pursuant to the loan agreement signed between EBID and E&P on July 7, 2025.
“We hereby write to confirm the disbursement of the amount of USD100 million (One Hundred Million United States Dollars) in two tranches per the attached transfer instructions,” the letter said.
The facility was granted to finance E&P’s involvement in the Black Volta Project, one of Ghana’s largest undeveloped gold mining projects located in the Upper West Region.
The confirmation of the disbursement comes amid an ongoing legal dispute over ownership and control of the Black Volta Project involving E&P and former investors in Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd.
The project has become the subject of proceedings before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and related litigation in the High Court in England, following disagreements over the acquisition of debt and equity interests in the companies holding the mining concessions.
The US$100 million facility has featured prominently in the dispute, with Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd maintaining that E&P fully paid the agreed consideration for both the debt and equity interests acquired under the parties’ settlement agreement.
EBID’s confirmation provides documentary evidence that the funds were disbursed to E&P in accordance with the July 2025 loan agreement.
Other letters released by Azumah Resources showed that E&P transferred funds to the investors’ ex-investors.
