Aliu urges cooperation between KenyaAir and GhanaAir
Accra (Greater Accra) 18 September 2001 - Ghana Airways in fulfilment of Federal Aviation Administration, (FAA) requirement for resumption of its flight operation to the U.S. has suspended the freighting of mails and cargo to that country.
In addition passengers would now be required to physically identify their baggage before and will be allowed to carry one hand luggage not exceeding five kilograms.
The first flight leaves Accra to Baltimore on Tuesday whiles the second would go to New York on Wednesday. Those who were to travel last Wednesday and Saturday, were given priority.
The flight to Baltimore on Tuesday will be scheduled for those who
should have travelled last Wednesday 12th September on flight 130. However
those who should have travelled on Saturday 15th September on flight 160 are to
stand by in case there is room for additional passengers.
Hundreds of Ghana Airways passengers and crew are stranded in both
Accra and the United States following Tuesday’s attack on the World Trade
Centre and the Pentagon.
Special arrangements have been made for seven flights to cater for all passengers that were to travel last week and those with confirmed tickets for this week.
Mr Sam Bannerman-Bruce, Public Relations Manager of the airline said in an interview that knives and sharp objects such as envelop opener, nail file which were previously allowed on board have now be banned.
He said GhanaAir had to wait for clearance from FAA after meeting the new security measures before resuming flights to the US. "We already had the right to fly to US but after the terrorist attack on Tuesday, we had to seek clearance because all the airports in US were closed."
On the threat by the crew to embark on a strike action over salary cuts, he said Board Members and Management were holding a meeting to settle the issue amicably.
He said the salary cuts, one of the many reasons why the crew has threatened to go on strike, affected all staff and that this was done to sustain the Corporation.
GRi../
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Tema (Greater Accra) 18 September 2001 - The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) has for the past five years received a total of 200 million dollars direct investments, Dr Ofori Quaah, Acting Chief Executive said in Tema on Monday.
The investments include the exploration of oil along the coast of Ghana by large international oil companies, Dr Quaah told Capt. Nkrabea Effah-Darteh (RTD), Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development who paid a visit to the corporation.
He said GNPC has no expatriate staff, indicating that besides the capital investments, it has also obtained effective transfer to Ghana, appropriate technology relating to petroleum operations.
Dr Quaah said notwithstanding these laudable achievements, GNPC has in the recent past received a lot of bad publicity, which has also given a new experience to the corporation.
"In our efforts to chart a new course, we need the support of the media and we will open our doors to them for them to know, in a transparent manner, whatever we are doing in the oil industry".
Dr Quaah said the corporation is currently going through a new structural programme from which, it is hoped, would come out a new GNPC that would continue to bring in more investors to develop Ghana's oil industry.
Capt. Effah-Darteh, accompanied by Samuel Evans Ashong Narh, Tema Municipal Chief Executive and Directors of his Ministry said GNPC should continue to support the Municipal Assembly through the payment of property rates to increase the assembly's revenue.
He visited the Volta Aluminium Company, Cocoa Processing Company, Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority and First Battalion of Infantry (Michel Camp).
GRi.../
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Tema (Greater Accra) 18 September 2001 - The Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) has contributed over 1.6 billion dollars in taxes to the Ghanaian economy since its establishment 30 years ago.
Dr. Charles Mensah, VALCO Resident Director said on Monday that VALCO, the largest corporate taxpayer in the country, contributes 10 percent of the total taxes more than Ashanti Goldfields and Unilever Ghana Limited.
He told Capt. (rtd) Nkrabeah Effah-Darteh, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, who was on a visit to the Tema Municipality that VALCO has also paid over 700 million dollars in fees to the Volta River Authority (VRA) since 1967.
The visit was to encourage the industries to assist the Tema Municipal Assembly (TMA) in its environmental and sanitation and revenue generation programmes.
Apart from this VALCO has contributed over 43 million dollars through the VALCO Fund to charity, he said, adding: "We are five times bigger than the Ghana National Trust Fund".
He said VALCO, as an individual company is the eighth largest contributor of foreign exchange to the Ghanaian economy.
The company provides 20 million dollars worth of aluminium through the Minerals Commission to local aluminium companies.
Apart from annual support of 50,000 dollars given to the three major universities annually, the company has an annual scholarship scheme for children of Tema Manhean and Kpone. It also organises annual training programmes for teachers of technical schools and polytechnics.
So far, 70 teachers have benefited from the programme that is aimed at improving the technical and human resource base of the country.
Dr Mensah said VALCO, which is the second largest aluminium smelter in sub-Sahara Africa, if well looked after, would serve as a motor for industrial growth.
The company employs 1,300 workers out of whom only 12 are expatriates. There were 182 Americans in 1967.
Mr. Ron Helton, Managing Director of VALCO, said misconceptions that VALCO, which currently consumes 25 percent of power generated by VRA, was paying very little for energy was unfortunate, saying the rate is reviewed every five years and it has always gone up.
He said on the contrary, MOZAL, the aluminium smelter in Mozambique pays only one-third of what VALCO pays for electricity.
There is pressure on the company to keep production cost low due to competition on the world market in order to make profits. This is because new smelters with the latest technology are producing at the lower costs.
Helton called on Ghanaians particularly industrialists, to support the West African Gas Pipeline project that will be another source of affordable energy for industrial growth.
VALCO, which has five pot-lines with the capacity for 200,000 metric tones, is currently producing 160,000 metric tonnes due to insufficient supply of energy.
GRi../
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