KEY POINTS

• Nigeria pitches a $50 million lithium processing plant and full profit repatriation.
• Over $2 billion in FDI has flowed into lithium and rare-earth projects in two years.
• New security architecture, including Mining Marshals and satellite monitoring, to protect investments.

Nigeria is intensifying its global pitch for mining capital, offering a $50 million lithium processing plant, duty waivers on imported equipment, and seamless repatriation of profits as part of a new investment incentive package unveiled in London.

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, made the announcement at the Resourcing Tomorrow Exhibition and Conference, one of the industry’s flagship global gatherings.

According to a statement by his Special Adviser, Kehinde Bamigbetan, Alake told global mining firms that Nigeria is formally positioned for large-scale investment, with policy reforms, security improvements, and industrial clusters designed to support processing rather than raw mineral exports.

Billions already committed to lithium and rare-earth projects

Alake said Nigeria has recorded more than $2 billion in investment commitments for lithium and rare earths over the past two years, attributing the inflow to the Tinubu administration’s policy on value addition.

He cited companies including Canmax Technologies, Jiuling Lithium, Avatar New Energy Nigeria Limited, and Asba Group, which have collectively committed over $1.3 billion to lithium processing projects across the country.

“These are not speculative ventures; they are bricks, mortar, and machinery,” he told participants. Construction is underway on a $50 million lithium processing facility on the outskirts of Abuja, the first of several planned industrial clusters stretching across Nasarawa, Kogi, Kwara, and Ebonyi.

He also highlighted the groundbreaking of a $400 million rare earths processing plant by the Hasetins Group on November 19, which he described as a milestone in Nigeria’s transition from ore extraction to refined mineral output.

Strengthened security for mining operations

Furthermore, Alake stressed that Nigeria had strengthened security around mining sites through the establishment of the Mining Marshals, a special unit tasked with enforcing mining law and protecting operators from illegal mining syndicates.

The federal government is augmenting this with satellite surveillance technology to track mining operations nationwide and curb leakages.

He presented the Nigeria Solid Minerals Company as the government’s designated commercial partner for joint ventures and noted that it holds mineral assets inherited from the defunct Nigerian Mining Corporation and offers private operators stability, transparency and co-investment options.