The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has unveiled a set of incentives aimed at attracting international mining investors, including duty exemptions on imported equipment and streamlined profit repatriation.

He announced the package while leading the Nigerian delegation at the ‘Resourcing Tomorrow’ annual exhibition and conference in London.

The minister stated that Nigeria has attracted over $2 billion in mineral-processing investments in the past two years.

He attributed this growth to President Bola Tinubu’s administration and its value-addition policy, which seeks to halt the export of raw minerals.

“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 stated that the federal government, which has deployed mining marshals to enforce regulations, is now upgrading the system with satellite technology to monitor mining activities across the country.

He also introduced the Nigeria Solid Minerals Company as the government’s preferred joint-venture partner, highlighting its access to mineral assets previously held by 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 attendees that Nigeria is ready for investment, highlighting that geological mapping now covers more than 80 percent of the country.

He added that the government has finalized solid minerals export guidelines to ensure Nigeria’s export processes meet global standards for traceability, environmental protection, and governance.