Aimed at sharing strategic goals and also building effective supplier relationship, Newmont Ghana, a subsidiary of Newmont Mining Corporation, has held its third annual Supplier Summit in Accra.

The Summit, which attracted Newmont’s Africa Region top 150 invited Ghanaian and international vendors, centred highly on Newmont’s Global 7x17 Strategic Goals (Seven million attributed ounces of gold by 2017), Safety, SAP Implementation, Business Excellence and Value Creation.

Speaking to journalists, Simon Blamires, Regional Supply Chain Director at Newmont Ghana, said, Newmont was committed to building the capacity of all vendors to meet the necessary requirements for effective supply development.

Commenting on the summit, Mr Blamires said: “These summits are exciting events - We will continue to engage with our key Suppliers and Contractors on our overall supply chain strategy, and share with them the key opportunities and challenges in 2012 and beyond.”

“These companies truly play a key role in determining whether or not we will be successful in meeting our objectives, so it is very important we communicate effectively with each other and are fully aligned,” he added.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Dr Toni Aubynn, who made a presentation at the summit, noted that, Newmont was creating opportunities for local Ghanaian companies to form partnerships and network with their international peers.

“This summit is an indicator of promoting capacity building for both local and international vendors and the Chamber of Mines really appreciates it.”

He said “about 70 per cent of mining expenditure goes into the supply-chain area, hence the need to support the growth of local businesses to increase the provision of basic materials to mining companies. We need to develop a national vision on local content in the mining industry, if we want to derive full benefit from mining”.

Dr Aubynn commended Newmont Ghana for taking the giant step in hosting the Supplier Summit, and challenged the vendors to make the best out of the event.

George Brakoh, Regional Manager Local Contractor and Supplier Development at Newmont Ghana, said the organisation is playing a key role within the mining industry of Ghana, to develop and execute a long-term sustainable policy for the development of Local Suppliers and Contractors, and increase the country’s manufacturing base.

“We aim to maximise the opportunities for local content at ‘local local’ (host communities), regional and national levels in accordance with Newmont Ghana’s Local Content Policy, and execute this under transparent and competitive procedures,” he said.

Newmont reviewed the global and regional growth plans of the company to reach the target of seven million ounces of gold production by 2017 with the participants.

Newmont Africa Region’s contribution to that target is estimated at doubling its current production within the region.

One of the highlights of the Summit was the overall Best Supplier Award for 2011, which went to Africa Underground Mining Services. The award was received by Gideon Janssen, the Chief Financial Officer of the corporate entity.**