The FG (Federal Government of Nigeria) has reiterated that foreign companies cannot directly obtain mining licences in Nigeria, insisting that the country’s mining laws prohibit such arrangements.
The government said all mining operators must comply with existing regulations, noting that licences in the sector can only be issued to duly registered Nigerian entities in line with the law, ENigeria Newspaper has learnt.
This was disclosed in a statement issued by Segun Tomori, Special Assistant on Media to the Minister of Solid Minerals Development.
It added that the enforcement of the policy forms part of broader reforms aimed at sanitising the mining sector and ensuring transparency in the management of Nigeria’s solid mineral resources. According to Tomori, the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act of 2007 expressly forbids issuing mining licenses to foreign businesses.
He said the clarification came in response to claims made by Jupiter Ltd., a mining company, claiming Nigeria had taken control of a British lithium property.
According to Tomori, there is no legal or contractual connection between the Federal Government and any business known as Jupiter Lithium through the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and the Nigerian Mining Cadastral Office. He noted that the controversy stemmed from the revocation of mineral titles belonging to Basin Mining Ltd, a Nigerian company allegedly linked to an Australian national, Steve Davis.
The statement claims that the mineral titles 45454ML, 45117ML, 45118ML, 40532ML, and 40533ML for the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years were canceled due to the company’s failure to pay statutory yearly service fees of ₦2.494 billion.
“The revocation followed due notice served on the company in line with extant laws governing default in payment of annual service fees,” Tomori said.
He further alleged that Jupiter, which he described as unknown to Nigerian mining authorities, falsely claimed that its licences were revoked in favour of a Chinese firm.
“This is a complete fabrication,” he added.
The government claimed that the purported action was intended to launch what it called a campaign of defamation against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during his state visit to the UK and to blackmail the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development’s ongoing efforts to sanitize Nigeria’s mining industry.
Tomori also accused individuals linked to the controversy, including Steve Davis and Hamish MacDonald, of engaging in misleading activities within the mining sector. He alleged that Davis operated as a mining speculator who established several companies to acquire mineral titles without carrying out actual mining operations.
According to him, the individual is linked to multiple firms including Comet Minerals Ltd, Basin Mining Ltd, Range Mining Ltd, Northern Numero Ltd, Sunrise Minerals Ltd and Iron Ore Mining Ltd.
He added that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would not tolerate activities capable of undermining reforms in the mining sector.
“The nefarious activities of the past that stunted the growth of the mining sector will no longer be tolerated.
Ongoing reforms that have repositioned the sector and attracted growing global interest have come to stay,” he said.
