Ghana’s Industrial Ambition on Display as Mahama Commissions B5 Plus Steel Plant

President John Dramani Mahama on Friday commissioned the second phase expansion of the B5 Plus Steel Ball Mill and Section Mill (SBMS) Manufacturing Plant at Larkpleku village, near Central University  in a ceremony that brought together ministers of state, members of parliament, traditional rulers, and diplomats, including a representative from the Indian High Commission.

But the day belonged to two voices. President Mahama delivered a wide-ranging address on industrial policy and national sovereignty. And B5 Plus Group Chairman Mr. Mukesh “Mike” Thakwani gave an impassioned, at times bold, account of what it means to build heavy industry on Ghanaian soil  and what the country must do to protect it.

Together, the two speeches painted a portrait of a nation at an inflexion point: one beginning to take its manufacturing potential seriously.

“This Is What Industrial Confidence Looks Like”

Before a single policy argument was made, Thakwani made a point of pride. “Everything you see here from the civil works to the structural fabrication, from the electrical installations to the weighbridges, the automobile centres, the residential facilities and factory structures  has been designed, fabricated and constructed by Ghanaian hands in Ghana,” he told the crowd. “One hundred per cent made in Ghana. Only the machinery was imported. The vision, execution, engineering and commitment are Ghanaian.”

It was a statement that set the tone for both speeches. President Mahama echoed the sentiment from a policy perspective, declaring: “Today marks more than the expansion of a factory. It marks the expansion of Ghana’s industrial ambition.”

The newly commissioned facility now enables B5 Plus to produce all types of steel sections, grinding media balls for the mining industry, expanded pre-engineered building (PEB) fabrication, and heavy industrial structures including warehouses, tankers, and trailers.

Tackling the Import Bill

At the heart of President Mahama’s address was a frank diagnosis of Ghana’s steel dependency. The country’s annual steel demand stands at over 1.2 million metric tonnes  driven by construction, energy infrastructure, mining, and manufacturing  and a significant portion of that has historically been met through imports, draining the nation’s foreign exchange reserves.

Mahama argued that expanding domestic facilities like B5 Plus directly addresses that vulnerability. “To reduce steel imports by even 20 to 30 per cent annually, the foreign exchange savings alone would amount to hundreds of millions of dollars,” he said. “This is what industrial sovereignty is about.”

Thakwani reinforced this from the ground level, noting that B5 Plus directly employs and indirectly supports over 15,000 Ghanaians. The company has been a Ghana Club 100 member for over a decade, has paid more than GHS 800 million in taxes, and is on course to surpass GHS 1 billion, a figure the President cited proudly from the podium.

The Grinding Media Opportunity  and a Plea for Protection

One of the more detailed passages of Thakwani’s speech concerned a specific and strategically significant product: grinding media balls, used extensively across Ghana’s gold, bauxite, and manganese mining operations.

Across Ghana and West Africa, the annual requirement for grinding media exceeds 200,000 metric tonnes. B5 Plus alone has a production capacity of 120,000 tonnes per year. Yet Ghana’s domestic consumption stands at around 70,000 tonnes annually  and a significant portion of even that is still being imported.

“This represents an opportunity,” Thakwani said. He called on the government to introduce enhanced anti-dumping duties on imported grinding media balls and steel products, or structured restrictions to ensure local manufacturing capacity is fully utilised before imports are considered. “This is not protectionism,” he was careful to add. “This is strategic industrial policy.”

He pointed to a concrete performance benchmark to make the case for local quality: B5 Plus grinding media balls supplied to Gold Fields achieve a consumption rate of approximately 702 grammes per tonne, against an industry target of 720 grammes per tonne  a saving of 18 grammes per tonne and an efficiency gain of nearly 3 per cent. “Lower consumption is better,” Thakwani explained. “It means our balls last longer and deliver more value per tonne of ore processed. This is Ghanaian manufacturing delivering global standards.”

Scrap Exports Ban and the Value Chain Push

President Mahama highlighted the government’s ban on the export of non-ferrous scrap metal in its raw form as a key structural policy shift. For years, Ghana generated large volumes of scrap through construction, demolition, and vehicle imports  only to ship much of it abroad unprocessed.

“We are moving up the value chain. We are exporting finished and semi-finished products, not raw scrap,” the President declared. The ban is projected to boost processed metal exports by $250 million to $300 million annually, while creating between 5,000 and 10,000 new jobs.

Thakwani echoed the importance of raw material access, urging the government to facilitate B5 Plus’s access to domestic scrap from public institutions to strengthen local steel recycling. He also flagged a tax anomaly he said actively undermines value addition: raw materials and finished grinding media balls are currently taxed at the same rate of 5 per cent. “In Asia, finished exports are incentivised,” he said. “Ghana must protect its manufacturers.”

The 24-Hour Economy: Already Open for Business

In what was perhaps the most timely declaration of the event, President Mahama revealed he had signed the 24-Hour Economy Authority Bill into law just the day before  and immediately named B5 Plus as one of the first companies expected to register under the initiative.

“Steel production benefits from continuous operation to reduce energy wastage, improve furnace efficiency, lower unit production costs and maximise asset utilisation,” he said. The 2026 budget has allocated GHS 110 million to operationalise the initiative. “When factories run three shifts instead of one, employment rises, productivity increases and exports expand,” he added.

Thakwani did not wait for the policy to take hold. “Your Excellency, B5 Plus is not waiting for the 24-hour economy. We are already operating within it,” he declared. The company has commissioned a 16.5 MW rooftop solar power plant already in operation, with an additional 16.5 MW installation underway, bringing total renewable energy capacity to 33 MW by year-end, used exclusively to power its own manufacturing operations. “This demonstrates that heavy industry and the green transition can co-exist,” he said.

Fiscal Reforms for Manufacturers

President Mahama outlined a package of tax measures in the 2026 budget designed to reduce the burden on industry: abolition of the COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy, a reduction in the effective VAT rate from 21.9% to 20%, the introduction of digital VAT monitoring systems, and ongoing reviews of income tax, customs, and excise regimes.

“Predictable tax policies lower uncertainty, lower compliance friction, and reduce operational costs,” he said. “Industrial investors must compete on productivity and not navigate through unpredictability.”

Thakwani used his platform to press for more. He asked for fiscal incentives on large-scale industrial equipment and key raw materials, and stronger enforcement of the local content policy  particularly in the mining and private sectors, where he said imported prefabricated structures and steel products continue to enter the market, sometimes with exemptions, despite world-class local alternatives being available.

“Every unnecessary import represents foreign exchange leaving Ghana, jobs not created locally, and industrial capacity underutilised,” he said.

A Regional Play: AfCFTA and West African Markets

Both speakers situated the B5 Plus expansion within a continental frame. Mahama pointed to Ghana’s strategic advantages  political stability, the AfCFTA Secretariat, deep-water ports at Tema and Takoradi, and growing energy infrastructure  as reasons why Ghana is well-positioned to become a manufacturing hub for the sub-region.

“Instead of importing steel from Asia or Europe, West Africa can source competitively from Ghana’s manufacturing sector,” he said. “This is regional value chain integration in real practice.” Africa, he noted, requires over $100 billion in infrastructure investment annually. Under Ghana’s Big Push programme, substantial commitments to roads, railways, bridges, housing, and energy transmission lines all represent demand for locally produced steel.

Thakwani said B5 Plus is already positioned to serve that demand. The company is among the leading producers of pre-engineered buildings, rebars, and structural steel in West Africa  and among the largest on the continent. Products including rebars, nails, binding wire, galvanised mesh, PV structures, tankers, and trailers are all being manufactured to international quality standards, certified by TÜV Nord Germany. “Ghana can already produce our products not only for domestic use, but for the export market as well,” he said.

More Than a Manufacturer  A Community Anchor

Thakwani’s speech ranged well beyond the factory floor. B5 Plus has organised three national blood donation exercises, run educational sponsorship programmes, supported sports and community institutions, and supplied free medical oxygen to both government and private hospitals for over 25 months during the COVID-19 pandemic.

He drew particular attention to DPS International School, which he said was planted as a seed during President Mahama’s first administration. That institution now produces graduates entering MIT, Howard, Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College, King’s College, and UCL. The company is now seeking land for a police station to enhance security around the facility, which serves approximately 5,000 daily workers.

President Mahama commended the traditional authorities and people of Larkpleku for welcoming industrial growth into their community. He had a pointed message, however, for those involved in a land dispute adjoining the facility. “I urge those who are litigating the land behind here to resolve the issue quickly so that B5 Plus can continue with its expansion,” he said.

Thakwani acknowledged the same challenge, thanking Minister for Trade Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare and MP for Ningo-Prampram Sam George  who also serves as Minister for Communications, Digital Technology and Innovation  for their consistent support in navigating it.

Building a Mining-Powered Industrial Nation

Both speakers closed with a call to action equal parts economic vision and national pride.

“Industrial transformation has not happened overnight,” President Mahama said. “It is a process, and it requires strategic policy, a stable macroeconomy, private sector confidence, infrastructure investment, skilled labour, and regional integration. Today’s commissioning signals that Ghana is moving on the right path.”

Thakwani ended with a rallying cry that drew warm applause. “Under your leadership, Your Excellency, Ghana can move from being merely a mining country to becoming a mining-powered industrial nation. Let us manufacture what we consume. Let us export what we produce. Let us create jobs with dignity. Let us transform local content into national prosperity.”

President Mahama formally declared the facility open: “On behalf of the government and people of Ghana, it is my honour to declare the second phase expansion of the B5 Plus Steel Manufacturing Facility duly commissioned. May this investment strengthen Ghana’s economy, deepen our regional trade, and contribute to Africa’s industrial renaissance.”

The commissioning ceremony was followed by a factory tour led by the President, a cake cutting, and lunch. The event was MC’d by Nathaniel Attoh, with performances from students of DPS International School.

The B5 Plus Steel Ball Mill and Section Mill Manufacturing Plant is located at Larkpleku village, Ningo-Prampram, Greater Accra.