Federal government has massively invested in solid mineral exploration over the last two years, and is beginning to reap the benefits.
Four lithium plants are set to be commissioned before the end of 2025, a development that could spark a chain of positive reactions Lithium is a major component in the production of batteries for renewable energy systems, and China has confirmed plans to set up production in Nigeria
The four plants, estimated to be worth over $800 million, will boost the local economy and create more jobs for the thousands of people to be employed in the plants. Minister of Solid Minerals, Dr. Dele Alake, disclosed this in a statement.
Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, believes the US would be considering Nigeria given its policy to diversify from China.
This is a follow-up to an earlier statement from the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, who mentioned that four lithium plants were being constructed nationwide.
He added that it had sparked investors’ interest, with some investors from Brazil pledging $3 billion for the project. Minister announces timeline for launch of $800 million lithium plants The Minister gave the locations and the expected timeline of launch.
According to Alake; A $600 million lithium processing plant is about to be commissioned near Kaduna and Niger states.
A $200 million lithium plant near Abuja is nearing completion. Two more plants are set to be launched in Nasarawa State in Q3, 2024.
The Minister narrated that several reforms had been implemented since 2023 to turn the sector around from N6 billion in revenue in 2023 to N38 billion in 2024.
His statement read; “That kind of turnaround tells you something is working. One of the first things we did was tighten the licensing process.
We made it clear that no one gets a mining licence without showing a real plan for local processing.
Exporting raw minerals without adding value here at home wasn’t helping our economy, and we had to stop that. Since then, we’ve seen real results of over $800 million in processing investments last year alone”.
FG increases investment in mineral exploration According to Alake’s statement, the government is also investing in mineral exploration.
As of 2023, Nigeria had only invested $2 million in mineral exploration, far behind other countries like Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa that had spent $148 million and $300 million, respectively.
The ministry has now secured N1 trillion for mineral exploration in 2025, to make the solid minerals sector globally competitive.
The world has also recognised the ongoing reforms championed by President Bola Tinubu, and Nigeria now chairs the African Mineral Strategy Group, a new bloc focused on local value addition and fairer mineral trade, Alake stated.
The Minister also disclosed that the government is tackling illegal mining head-on, with over 300 arrests made in 2024 and about 150 ongoing prosecutions, including foreign nationals.
To grow the sector, the government is helping the local small-scale miners formalise their operations and get access to finance through cooperative groups.
Alake confirmed growing investor interest in the sector, adding that the Mining Cadastral Office had received over 10,000 applications.
He said; “We’re turning Nigeria’s mineral wealth into real economic value for our people, our industries, and our future”.
Lithium is a key component of batteries used in in renewable energy storage systems, and other associated products like electric vehicles.
Nigeria’s lithium reserves are estimated to be quite massive and valued at over $34 billion a critical addition to the green energy revolution.
Nigeria-based Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing has also ventured into the production of electric and solar-powered vehicles. Meanwhile China has announced plans to site EV factory in Nigeria to harness lithium.
