Duty waivers, profit repatriation… Alake offers mining incentives to investors at London expo

Dele Alake, minister of solid minerals development, has announced a series of incentives, including duty waivers on imported equipment and seamless repatriation of profits, to attract global mining investors.

Alake unveiled the package while leading a Nigerian delegation to the ‘Resourcing Tomorrow’ annual exhibition and conference in London.

The minister said the country had recorded more than $2 billion in mineral-processing investments over the past two years.

This, he said, was driven by President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s value-addition policy aimed at ending raw mineral exports.

“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,” Alake explained.

“These are not speculative ventures; they are bricks, mortar, and machinery.

“And just outside Abuja, the federal capital of Nigeria, construction is underway for a 50-million-dollar lithium processing plant, the first in a network of industrial clusters that will extend through 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 $400million 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 minister said the federal government, which has deployed mining marshals to enforce regulations, is enhancing the system with satellite technology to monitor activities nationwide.

He presented the Nigeria Solid Minerals Company (NSMC) as the government’s preferred joint-venture partner, saying it offers access to mineral assets inherited from the defunct Nigerian Mining Corporation.

“The NSMC embodies our philosophy of shared prosperity through shared investment,” he said.

“It functions as a sovereign partner, co-investing in high-value mineral projects, de-risking exploration, and catalyzing downstream processing.”

Alake assured “more than 1,000 participants at the event that Nigeria is investment-ready, noting that geological mapping now covers over 80 percent of the country.

He said the government has also completed the solid minerals export guidelines to align Nigeria’s export system with global traceability, environmental, and governance standards.

Responding to concerns about the declining delivery of the global supply chain, he argued that value addition at the source remains the win-win solution.

Alake highlighted the formation of the Africa Minerals Support Group as an example of policies promoting beneficiation across the continent.

The minister pointed to Nigerian states operating mining companies as part of efforts to foster broader participation in the sector.

He also cited the signing of 427 community development agreements between Nigerian communities and mining companies as evidence of Nigeria’s commitment to economic, social, and governance principles.