Nigeria Bags $2.6B In Mining Investment – Record-Breaking FDI Surge

Nigeria has secured over $2.6 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in its mining sector over the past two years, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, has disclosed. He credited the surge to strengthened governance, the digitisation of licensing processes, and a rigorous crackdown on illegal mining operations.

Speaking at the Powering Africa Summit in Washington, D.C., during a panel on “Critical Minerals in Africa: Meeting Global Demand,” Alake called on the United States and African nations to establish regional energy hubs to accelerate cross-border mining industrialisation and enhance global supply chains for essential minerals.

In a statement from his Special Assistant on Media, Segun Tomori, the minister emphasized that Africa’s mineral potential can only be maximized through sustainable partnerships and integrated infrastructure. He proposed the development of regional industrial corridors, citing examples such as the Lagos-Abidjan corridor spanning Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire, and the Walvis Bay Corridor, as key economic catalysts.

Alake explained that initiatives like nuclear power development in one West African country could serve entire corridors, driving local beneficiation, technology transfer, manufacturing, and cross-border industrialisation. He projected that establishing three to five such corridors across Africa would significantly boost industrialisation and create mutual benefits for both Africa and international partners.

Highlighting progress under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, Alake noted reforms that have strengthened governance, enhanced regulatory frameworks, digitised licensing, and repositioned the mining sector as a pivotal driver of economic diversification. He added that new measures, including the establishment of “Mining Marshals,” have resulted in the arrest of over 350 suspected illegal miners within a year, reinforcing Nigeria’s commitment to a secure and investor-friendly mining environment.

To attract further international investment, Alake assured prospective investors of Nigeria’s openness to genuine partnerships and outlined incentives such as tax waivers on imported mining equipment, full repatriation of profits after royalties and taxes, and expanded access to geological data. He further revealed that the government is scaling up the production of scientific, internationally certified geological data to support informed investment decisions.

Senior Vice President of the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM), Sarah Whitten, expressed the bank’s readiness to support African mining initiatives, emphasizing the critical role of political stability and the mobilisation of private sector capital. The panel also included global leaders such as Guinea’s Minister of Energy, Sekou Camara, and executives from Denham Capital, ReElement Technologies, and TechMet.