Nigeria’s solid minerals sector has attracted over $800 million in foreign investment, thanks to sweeping reforms introduced by the Tinubu administration, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, has revealed.

Speaking in a special interview for an upcoming State House documentary marking President Bola Tinubu’s second year in office, Alake credited the influx of capital to a new policy focus on local value addition and a tighter licensing regime aimed at ending the direct export of raw minerals.

“These investments follow the administration’s insistence that no miner gets a license without a clear local processing plant. The days of exporting raw minerals from pit to port are over,” the minister stated.

Among the headline projects, Alake said, are a $600 million lithium processing plant near the Kaduna-Niger border, set for commissioning this quarter, a $200 million lithium refinery near Abuja nearing completion, and two more processing facilities in Nasarawa expected to go live before Q3 2025.

According to him, in 2024 alone, the sector generated over ₦38 billion in revenue, up sharply from ₦6 billion the previous year, despite receiving just 18% of its ₦29 billion budgetary allocation.
“When we resumed, the entire sector generated ₦6 billion annually. By the end of 2024, we will hit ₦38 billion. That speaks to the effectiveness of our policy framework,” Alake said.

He further disclosed that in the first quarter of 2025, two major regulatory agencies, the Mining Cadastral Office (MCO) and the Mines Inspectorate, have already recorded ₦6.9 billion and ₦7 billion in revenue, respectively.

With ₦1 trillion allocated for mineral exploration this year, Alake said Nigeria is now prioritising the generation of internationally certified geological data to attract serious investors.

“Exploration is key,” he noted. “Before we came in, Nigeria had only spent $2 million on exploration, compared to $40 million in Sierra Leone, $148 million in Côte d’Ivoire, and over $300 million in South Africa. No investor will come without credible data.”

He added that the administration’s strategy is to turn Nigeria’s mineral wealth into real domestic value through job creation, technology transfer, and local manufacturing.

The minister also highlighted ongoing efforts to clamp down on illegal mining and integrate artisanal miners into the formal economy. Over 300 illegal miners were arrested in the past year, with 150 prosecutions currently underway and nine convictions—some involving foreign nationals—already secured.

“We’ve taken both kinetic and non-kinetic approaches,” he explained. “While enforcement continues through our Mining Marshals, we’re also empowering local communities by formalising their operations into cooperatives.”

More than 250 mining cooperatives have now been established nationwide to bring informal miners under regulatory oversight and into financial systems.

Nigeria’s growing leadership in the African mining space was also noted, with the country now chairing the newly formed African Mineral Strategy Group, an outcome of its strong stance at the 2024 Future Minerals Conference in Riyadh.

“We’re leading Africa in saying: no more raw material exports without domestic beneficiation,” Alake said.

Investor interest is surging globally, the Minister noted, with top-level engagement from the UK, U.S., Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.

“The former British Deputy Prime Minister invited me to Downing Street to discuss lithium. The U.S. sees Nigeria as a strategic alternative to China for critical minerals.”

He described the mining sector as a cornerstone of President Tinubu’s economic diversification plan.

“Nigeria has not had it this good in the solid minerals sector. We’re restoring confidence, building data, enforcing the law, and delivering real value to Nigerians. The Mining Cadastral Office alone received over 10,000 licensing applications this quarter; that’s a clear sign of the vitality we’ve brought under President Tinubu,” Alake stated.