Narawa Mining Company Suffers Legal Setback as High Court Dismisses Appeal Application

 

                                        File Photo

Narawa Company Limited has suffered a legal setback after the High Court in Accra dismissed its application for leave to appeal against an earlier ruling on the protection of its mining operations pending arbitration.

The Commercial Court Division of the High Court, presided over by Justice Afi Agbanu Kudomor, dismissed the application, ruling that the legality of the termination of the company’s mining leases is a matter for an Arbitral Tribunal to determine.

The decision leaves the substantive dispute over the termination of Narawa’s mining leases unresolved, with the company’s legal challenge to the termination remaining subject to the agreed arbitration process.

The application, filed on March 9, 2026, sought permission for Narawa to appeal against the court’s February 19, 2026 order, which granted provisional measures under Section 39 of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act, 2010 (Act 798).

Narawa argued that the court should allow it to challenge the portion of the earlier ruling relating to the protection of its operations at the mining sites. The company maintained that continued protection of its operations was unjustified because the mining leases had allegedly been terminated.

It further argued that the existing order restraining the state from transferring the mining sites to another entity was sufficient to preserve the status quo while the dispute remained before the tribunal.

However, the Republic of Ghana opposed the application, arguing that Narawa had failed to demonstrate sufficient merit in its proposed appeal.

Counsel for the state submitted that the legality of the termination of the mining leases was the central issue in the pending arbitration and should be determined in accordance with the arbitration clauses contained in the mining agreements.

The state also maintained that the February 19 order was a temporary protective measure intended to remain in force until the Arbitral Tribunal finally determined the dispute.

After considering the submissions and affidavits presented by both parties, Justice Kudomor held that the proposed appeal centred on an issue already within the jurisdiction of the Arbitral Tribunal.

The court emphasised that its earlier ruling was provisional and did not determine the substantive merits of the dispute concerning the termination of the mining leases.

“The Court is however not minded to grant the instant application,” Justice Kudomor stated in her ruling.

Consequently, the court dismissed Narawa’s application for leave to appeal and made no order as to costs.

In its February 19, 2026 ruling, the High Court granted Narawa three provisional protections pending the final determination of the dispute by the Arbitral Tribunal.

The orders restrained the state from forcefully removing or evicting the company from the mining sites covered by its leases, prohibited harassment or interference with its operations, and barred the state from purporting to grant or transfer the sites to another person or entity.

The latest ruling does not finally determine whether the termination of Narawa’s mining leases was lawful. That substantive issue remains before the Arbitral Tribunal for determination.

Credit: Nana Kwasi Asare