Dele Alake, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, has announced plans to revoke 1,000 dormant mining licences in the nation’s solid minerals sector.
Recall that the minister in 2024 revoked 924 licenses over failure to pay statutory charges and fees due for the Federal Government through the Mining Cadastral Office, warning licensees yet to resume work on their mining projects to do so immediately.
The minister had at the time explained that one of the obstacles to the development of the sector was licence racketeering carried out by persons who obtained licences over Cadastral units that they know have minerals of commercial value.
However, Alake on Wednesday, in his remarks at the the opening of the maiden edition of the National Steel Summit in Abuja in Abuja, said “To clean up our licensing system, I had to revoke over 900 licences, which were dormant titles, and they had become tools in the hands of speculators rather than instruments of development.
“I wish to announce here again that very shortly, I am going to announce another over 1,000 licences that will be revoked.
“The Solid Minerals sector is no longer a playground for opportunists. It is a driver of national industrial growth and continental leadership.
“We are laying the foundation for Nigeria where mineral resources create Nigerian jobs, feed Nigerian industries, and build Nigerian prosperity”, he noted.
Alake described the theme of the summit, “Rebuilding and Consolidating Nigeria’s Steel Industry: Collaborative Action for Sustainable Growth and Global Competitiveness”, as apt and in line with Nigeria’s quest for economic diversification.
He stressed that the administration of President Bola Tinubu is determined to positioning Nigeria as the steel hub of West Africa.
