The Volta Aluminium Company Limited (VALCO) has started commercial operations at its first Continuous Casting and Rolling (CCR) Electrical Grade Rod Mill, marking a shift towards higher-value aluminium manufacturing as the company expands its workforce and prepares to restore more production capacity.
The new production line enables the smelter to process primary liquid aluminium into electrical-grade rods for local manufacturers and export markets, including Europe, Chief Executive Officer Robert Makila Sambian said on November 3, 2026, during the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources’ Progress Series.
VALCO’s workforce grew to 848 employees by October 2026, from 785 in December 2025, as the company introduced the new production line and retooled its operations. Management expects direct employment to reach 1,500 when all five potlines are restored and downstream manufacturing expands, with more than 6,000 additional indirect jobs projected nationwide.
The new mill allows VALCO to move beyond producing primary aluminium metal into manufacturing products for the power and construction sectors, while pursuing export orders.
“Through the operationalization of the CCR rod mill, VALCO is no longer merely an exporter of primary metal. We are supplying high-grade electrical rods to fuel Ghana’s domestic power and construction sectors while simultaneously fulfilling orders for European export markets. This dual-market focus strengthens our foreign exchange earnings and positions Ghana as a competitive player across the global aluminium value chain,” Dr. Sambian said.
The company has also introduced a 1:4:4 shift system at the CCR plant to support continuous 24-hour manufacturing. Under the arrangement, four workers are assigned to each operational role across four rotating shifts, which management says will sustain production while improving worker safety and reducing fatigue.
“The 1:4:4 shift system is a vital operational model for the CCR plant. Running a 24-hour continuous casting process requires absolute consistency, and assigning four dedicated personnel to every role across four rotating shifts allows us to maintain non-stop production while prioritizing worker safety, mitigating fatigue, and directly expanding stable job opportunities for our workforce,” Dr. Sambian said.
VALCO has added 16 lift trucks, two payloaders, two melting furnaces, a centrifuge system, mobile crushing equipment and cranes to support its production expansion. It has also installed dedicated natural gas pipeline infrastructure.
The company has secured 5,000 metric tonnes of imported carbon anodes to support the ramp-up of its reduction cells, with a target of reaching 150 operating units. VALCO said it was on track to close October with 98 active reduction cells.
The expansion is part of the government’s broader industrial agenda to increase domestic processing and value addition rather than rely on exports of unrefined raw materials.
