Authorities at the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development yesterday confirmed the discovery of world class nickel in Kaduna State, by an Australian mining syndicate.
Top officials at the ministry, who confirmed the development in separate telephone chats with LEADERSHIP, on Monday night, said a more comprehensive report would be made available by the Ministry today.
One of the sources, who craved anonymity as he was not authorised to speak on the matter, said: “Yes it is true. Nickel has been found in Nigeria, but we cannot say anything right now. But be rest assured that a comprehensive report on the matter will be made available by the Ministry today, or as soon as possible.”
Nickel is a silvery-white metal with a shiny surface common to most metals, and is ductile and capable of being drawn into thin wires. The name is said to come from the German word Kupfernickel, meaning “Old Nick’s copper,” a term used by German miners. It is also said to be one of three naturally occurring elements that is strongly magnetic. The other two are iron and cobalt, but nickel is less magnetic than either iron or cobalt.
Nickel is used in many forms, including electric guitar strings, magnets and rechargeable batteries. It is added to a very important metal, alloy-stainless steel, which has numerous applications. It is used in cookware, cutlery, kitchen appliances and various bronzes and brasses as well as coins among several others.
LEADERSHIP findings revealed that the top ten countries where the mineral is found in tonnage include the Philippines (73,000) , Russia (240,000), Canada (240,000), Australia (234,000), New Caledonia (190,000), Indonesia (170,000), Brazil (110,000) China (102,000), Colombia (73,000) and Cuba (57,000).
Following the discovery, Nigeria is set to join the league of the world’s largest producers as the find is said to offer potential for early cash flow. Nigeria’s current major source of nickel, scrap metals, currently yields an average 2.5 metric tons annually.
The discovery was first reported by an Australian national daily, The Australian, which reported that the private mining syndicate that made the discovery was led by Hugh Morgan, a mining industry veteran.
“The discovery is unusual because the nickel is found in small balls up to 3mm in diameter of a high purity in shallow soils in what could be the surface expression of a much bigger hard-rock nickel field.
“The nickel balls, rumoured to grade better than 90 per cent nickel, and thought to be a world first given their widespread distribution, offer the potential for early cash flow from a simple and low-cost screening operation to fund a full assessment of the find that has exploration circles buzzing,” The Australian reported.
Though the newspaper reported that details of the discovery were sketchy, it indicated that the discovery was on a border town in Kaduna State, close to Dangoma, a small farming settlement about 160 kilometres northeast of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
According to the report, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, is one of 13 African ministers of mines scheduled to attend this year’s three-day Africa Down Under mining conference at Perth’s Pan Pacific Hotel in September.
…Can Generate N5trn Annually From Mining – Fayemi
Meanwhile, Fayemi has said that the analysis conducted by major stakeholders in the solid minerals sector, the Association of Metal Exporters of Nigeria, indicates that Nigeria can generate at least N5 trillion annually from mining and exporting of its vast solid mineral deposits.
He stated this in his keynote address at the opening of the 5th International Mining Investment Conference/Exhibition on Nigeria, which started in Abuja yesterday, with the theme, ‘Connecting the Global Mining Industry to the Opportunities of the Solid Minerals Sector in Nigeria.’
The minister said: “Based on current data, Nigeria’s solid minerals sector only makes up about 0.34 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).
“While that is significant, it is much smaller than its true potential as the vast majority of our mining assets have yet to be exploited.
“According to one of the major stakeholders in the solid minerals sector, the Association of Metal Exporters of Nigeria, we can generate at least N5 trillion annually from mining and exporting of its vast solid mineral deposits, with several multiplier effects on job creation, state development and social infrastructure that could position the solid minerals sector as the main catalyst for national development.”
Fayemi noted that should Nigeria successfully implement the proposed recommendations, growth is expected to return to the sector in the form of new exploration activity, operations and production from active mining, functional and expanded processing and refining capacity, and higher value-addition in exports.
“The net outcome will be the creation of thousands of direct jobs and potentially hundreds of thousands of indirect jobs. We anticipate contribution to mining GDP to exceed $25 billion by 2026 as industries are better able to use the output of the sector, substituting for imports,” he added.
The minister, however, lamented that the sector was faced with both internal and external challenges which include the lack of viable geosciences data and information, low industry participants, institutions and governance
On the external challenges, he said: “Asides the negative perceptions about the Nigerian investment environment is the turmoil besetting the global commodities market as key sources of demand that supported decent prices over the past two decades have steadily declined.
“This has put mines and mining houses under immense pressure which is reflected in the sharp decline in the share prices of major industry players such as Glencore, Anglo-American and Rio Tinto. “Naturally, as the prices of metals and their assets plunge, many of the top mining houses are pulling back from investment planning, shutting down mines and optimizing current operations. This greatly affects our prospects for new entrants into the Nigerian mining space.
He, however, stated that in spite of the abovementioned challenges, the sector was resolved to overcome them and fulfil its mandate.
“As things currently stand, in 2015, the sector contributed approximately 0.33 per cent to the GDP of the country. This contribution is a reversal from historically higher percentages (about 4-5 per cent in the 1960s-70s).
“Our policy goal is to return to a contribution level of 5 per cent -7 per cent over the next 10-15 years, and the recently approved Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and the Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) is very supportive of this aspiration.
Also speaking the vice president, Prof Yemi Osinbanjo, who was represented by the special adviser to the president on Economic Matters, Dr Adeyemi Dipeolu, said: “The conference is important because it is coming at a time when the world is mired in economic crises, which requires a synergy of efforts to restore goals and normalcy.
“The administration of President Buhari has consistently advocated and pursued the formidable policy of diversifying the Nigerian economy from over reliance on crude oil with the current economic downturn. It had become imperative that we focus on areas of comparative advantage, like agriculture and solid minerals development.”
While urging the participants to bring up strategies of engagement, he assured that the federal government, through the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, had developed a roadmap to provide the basis for some key initiatives which had been identified as crucial to the success of the sector.
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