Honourable minister of solid minerals
I wish to thank the press for the increased reporting of the activities of the solid minerals ministry in particular and the sector in general since the inception of our administration.
This is evident in the decision of editors to set up solid mineral desks for comprehensive coverage of the sector. This exercise of social responsibility will further enlighten Nigerians, encourage more interest and boost participation in the sector.
Today, we are taking a major step in the efforts to implement the seven point agenda to position the sector for economic consolidation and international competitiveness by announcing a new regime of rates and charges for various services of the departments and agencies of the ministry.
This is in view of the introduction of qualitative measures and human and technological capacity upgrades implemented in recent times to raise the level of technical efficiency of the services, improve the traffic of transactions and develop infrastructure to cope with the resurgence of business interests in the sector.
For instance, we supervised the successful implementation and conclusion of the mineral sector support for economic diversification, Mindiver project.
Examples include the mining cadastral office, the agency responsible for licensing, which acquired the new mining information system, and the emc+ portal. This enabled a 24-hour application and administration system that accelerated the rate of applications and the access of applicants to the mco. Furthermore, it has improved transparency and accountability, thus giving stakeholders worldwide the confidence to invest in the Nigerian mining sector.
The Nigerian geological survey agency acquired an integrated geological database that is available and accessible to the public. This facility, known as the data centre, has made the acquisition of geological information easier for companies embarking on exploration.
The artisanal and small-scale miners department acquired the first electronic inventory of operators through the Mindiver project, making it easier for the department to provide training and extension services and improve government support for artisanal miners co-operatives.
Beyond the impact on these agencies, the World Bank loan, through the Mindiver project, established a system for the estimation and assessment of revenues from the mining sector, established fiscal accountability and a transparent framework for the Solid Minerals Development Fund, and developed a local supply chain for industrial minerals.
Since the activation of these systems, all the stakeholders in the mining sector have been enjoying the improved services but at the rates in force before the services were provided. It is therefore equitable that those who use these services to invest in the mining sector and make profits from it should be on the frontlines of the government’s efforts to recoup rather than pass it on to poor Nigerians.
Thus, in line with the powers conferred on me by the Mining and Minerals Act 2007, I set up a committee of the directors of departments and directors-general of agencies under the ministry and charged them with the mandate to work out new rates to justify government’s’ investment in the service infrastructure and to cope with the expected meteoric spike in the traffic of applicants besieging the regulatory machinery.
The relevant bodies are the department of artisanal and small-scale mining, mine inspection, mining and environmental compliance, the Nigerian mining cadastre office, the Nigerian geological survey agency and the Nigerian Institute of Mining.
There are 268 items in the rate regime so it will be difficult to announce each of the items. The major highlights are as follows:
• Applicants for mining leases will pay n3 million; reconnaissance permit, n300,000; exploration license, n600,000; small scale mining license, n300,000; quarry lease, n600,000; and water user permit, n300,000;
• The annual service fee is now N31,500 per cadastral unit for the first time in small-scale mining. N260,000; quarry lease, N500,000; and mining lease, N1,250,000;
• Penalties for late renewal of mineral licenses: reconnaissance permit, n600,000; exploration license, n1,500,000; mining lease, n3,000,000; and quarry lease, n1,500,000.
• Royalty rate per standard weight of minerals will now cost 100 percent more. Baryte, with n42,000 as market value per tonne, attracts n2,100 royalty; coal, with n100,000 per tonne, attracts n3,000; gold, with n1,081,200 per ounce as market value, attracts n36,436 royalty per tonne; lead/zinc concentrate, with 480,000 per tonne as market value, attracts a royalty of n14,400 per tonne. Lithium ore (lepidolite) at the current market value of n600,000 per tonne attracts n18,000 royalty per tonne; lithium (kunzite) at the current market value of n3 million per tonne attracts n90,000 royalty per tonne; and lithium ore (spodumene) at the current market value of n316,667 per tonne attracts n9,500 royalty per tonne.
• The license to manufacture explosives now costs n20 million; modifying explosives costs n10 million; and the sale of explosives for mining costs n500,000.
• Investors willing to obtain a license to refine gold will pay n5 million, and a permit to operate a mineral processor costs n100,000.
• Mineral resources map of Nigeria will cost N500,000, and the geological map of Nigeria now costs N300,000.
Conclusion
It is important to note that, as part of governance procedures, we held a stakeholder summit to sensitize the concerned public to the impending reforms. We thank all the stakeholders for their support and pledge that we will continue to serve them better and improve the ease of doing business in the mining sector.
Dr. Dele Alake
Honourable minister of solid minerals
