In a renewed drive to position Nigeria as a leading mining destination, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, has unveiled a package of incentives aimed at attracting large-scale investment into the sector.
The incentives, which include unhindered repatriation of profits and duty waivers on imported mining equipment, were announced on Tuesday at the Resourcing Tomorrow Exhibition and Conference in London.
In a statement issued in Abuja by his Special Adviser, Hon. Kehinde Bamigbetan, Alake assured global mining firms and industry stakeholders of Nigeria’s preparedness to host major investments, citing improved policies and a more investor-friendly environment.
The minister disclosed that Nigeria has recorded significant progress in mineral processing, attracting over $2 billion in investments in lithium and rare earth projects within the last two years.
He attributed the growing foreign direct investment to the value-addition policy of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, which has ended pit-to-port mineral exports and placed emphasis on local processing to boost economic returns and job creation.
Read Also: We feel nothing but pity for Rivers Governor Fubara, Says PDP
“Since last year, companies such as Canmax Technologies, Jiuling Lithium, Avatar New Energy Nigeria Limited, and Asba Group have collectively invested over 1.3 billion US dollars in lithium processing projects across Nigeria. These are not speculative ventures; they are bricks, mortar, and machinery,” he said.
He added that construction is ongoing outside Abuja on a 50-million-dollar lithium processing plant — the first in a planned network of industrial clusters spanning Nasarawa, Kogi, Kwara, and Ebonyi states.
“On November 19, this year, Nigeria broke new grounds in the processing of rare earths ores with the groundbreaking of the $ 400 million rare earth plant of the Hasetins group. It is expected to be ready in 15 months. Also, a multi- billion dollar iron ore to steel project using the latest technology is in the pipeline.”
The ministers also cited the establishment of the Mining Marshals to enforce the mining law and protect miners, adding that the government is strengthening the security architecture with satellite technology that will track mining operations nationwide.
The Minister presented the Nigeria Solid Minerals Company as the government’s partner of choice for joint venture business that leverages on mineral assets inherited from the Nigerian Mining Corporation to meet partners’ demands.
His words: “The NSMC embodies our philosophy of shared prosperity through shared investment. It functions as a sovereign partner, co-investing in high-value mineral projects, de-risking exploration, and catalyzing downstream processing. “
Assuring the global mining stakeholders, Alake disclosed that the government has done the needful to prepare the solid minerals sector for investment, as the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency and exploration investors have covered over 80 percent of the country with geological mapping.
He also said the federal government has finalised the Solid Minerals Export Guidelines to align the country’s export system with international traceability and environmental and governance standards.
Addressing concerns of the conference on the declining delivery of global supply chain systems, Alake advocated local value addition in source countries as the win-win solution .
He narrated how the decision to form the Africa Minerals Support Group is influencing the formulation of local beneficiation policies across the continent.
Drawing examples of domestic integration from Nigeria, Alake said several states in Nigeria run mining companies, thus developing a sense of belonging.
He also cited the signing of 427 community development agreements between Nigerian communities and mining companies as a key strategy to ensure that economic, social, and governance principles are applied in Nigeria’s mining sector.
