VALCO making steady progress toward profitability – CEO
5th February 2026
The Chief Executive Officer of the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO), Dr. Robert Makila Sambian, says the once-struggling state-owned aluminium smelter is steadily recovering after years of operational difficulties.
Speaking in an interview monitored on Citi FM, Dr. Sambian said renewed government backing and improved internal operational reforms have begun to change VALCO’s long-standing narrative.
Established shortly after Ghana’s independence, VALCO has endured decades of intermittent operations, largely due to unreliable power supply that severely disrupted its potlines. According to Dr. Sambian, the company operated far below its potential for nearly 30 years.
“At the moment, three potlines are idle and have been cannibalised to support the remaining two. Even those two potlines are not fully populated,” he disclosed.
He noted that at its lowest point, VALCO’s aluminium smelter was running at just 23 percent capacity utilisation—one of the lowest levels recorded globally.
VALCO was originally designed with a nameplate capacity of 200,000 tonnes of primary aluminium annually, with each potline expected to operate 200 cells. However, only 114 cells were in use until recently.
Dr. Sambian said management interventions have begun to reverse this trend.
“With the measures we have implemented, we have increased the number of active cells from 114 to 124,” he revealed.
He added that management is targeting a capacity utilisation rate of 40 percent in the medium term, a move expected to boost production volumes, improve efficiency and restore financial viability.
“Raising capacity to that level will enhance output, increase efficiency and move the company toward profitability, or at the very least allow us to break even,” he explained.
VALCO, which now operates under the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, forms part of the government’s broader strategy to revitalise state-owned enterprises as engines of job creation.
Dr. Sambian said Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Armah-Kofi Buah, has toured the facility and expressed strong government commitment to transforming VALCO into a profitable enterprise, adding that the company’s Board has been fully supportive of management’s turnaround efforts.
He further revealed that VALCO has introduced value-addition production lines aimed at streamlining operations and reducing production costs.
According to Dr. Sambian, once the smelter reaches full operational capacity, it is projected to generate up to 5,000 jobs, delivering a significant boost to employment and the broader economy.