Economy
FG Yet To Award Coal Mining Licences—Fayemi
By Dipo Olowookere
Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, said that licences for mining of coal for power generation had not been awarded since the emergence of the current administration.
Mr Fayomi said this at a stakeholders and press meeting on pre-Sustainability in the Extractive Industries (SITEI) at the ministry on Wednesday in Abuja.
The Minister was represented at the event by his Technical Adviser/Chief of Staff, Mr Egghead Odewale.
He said the Federal Government had stated that coal mining licences would be issued only to companies interested in generating electricity from coal.
Mr Fayemi said the ministry would collaborate with the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, to ensure that coal contributed in power generation in the country.
He said:” One of the processes for the issuance is applicants must have power generating licence before they can be granted licences for coal-mining in the country.
“We have dedicated that coal deposits in the country would only be awarded for power and licences for mining of coal deposits would only be awarded to those who want to generate electricity.
“Since the inception of this administration, no licences for coal has been awarded which is not for the purpose of power generation, so if you acquire a licence for mining coal you have to also have that for power.
On the licensing process, he explained that once application was filed and it did not have any legal or existing issues to the holder of the licence, it would be awarded.
He added that it must however be for power generation.
Dr Ogbonnaya Orji, Director of Communication, Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI), pledged the organisation’s support to the SITEI programmes and operations.
Orji said one of the challenges NEITI had faced was in disseminating reports that focused on the issues in harnessing the opportunities and potentials in oil, gas and mining sector.
“We have had very limited channels and platform to disseminate this information so when we come across very credible organisations like SITEI, we leverage and partner with them.
“We use their channels, their stakeholders and events that they organise such as the series of conferences they organise to reach out to those we cannot ordinarily reach.
He said NEITI would focus its partnership with the ministry to see how Nigeria could channel its energy and attention to the solid mineral sector that had been ignored over the years.
Earlier, Executive Director, CRS-in-Action and Convener SITEI, said this year’s SITIE, Ms Bekeme Masade was focused on revitalising the Nigerian economy beyond oil, prospects for a thriving export driven extractive sector.
She explained that at a time like this when Nigeria was in doldrums over the lack of funding in oil and gas, it was the prime time to look into the mining sector and resource governance.
“So this year, SITEI, we are looking at resource redistribution and the strengthening of institutions.
“Last year through our research we have said that there was a 3.5 billion dollar opportunity in this sector, so what are we doing to make that happen and how can we strengthen the institutions?
“So we are looking forward to SITEI 2016 releasing a set of principles that will guide the sector.
Prof. Okey Onyejekwe, Special Adviser to the Minister, said the ministry would partner with other actors in the sector to ensure an effective monitoring and evaluation strategy.
He also said the ministry would attempt to create a robust communication strategic framework that would allow regular engagement of key stakeholders in the mineral implementation framework.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The duo of FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc and Food Concepts Plc helped root the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange in negative territory, following a 0.36 per cent slide on Monday, June 29.
FrieslandCampina, which is the maker of milk brands Peak Milk and Three Crowns, lost N13.44 to trade at N141.76 per unit compared with its previous price of N155.2o per unit, while Food Concepts, which is the parent company of fast food giant Chicken Republic, declined by 8 Kobo to end at N2.43 per share versus last Friday’s price of N2.51 per share.
Consequently, the NASD Security Index (NSI) slid by 15.51 points to 4,261.56 points from 4,277.07 points, and the market capitalisation lost N9.31 billion to close at N2.557 trillion compared with the previous value of N2.567 trillion.
The bourse finished with two price advancers yesterday, with Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc up by N3.80 to trade at N88.48 per unit versus N84.68 per unit, and Nitrox Industrial Gases Plc gaining 31 Kobo to end at N21.40 per share versus N21.09 per share.
The volume of securities traded by investors on the first trading day of the week contracted by 75.9 per cent to 229,314 units from the previous 955,096 units, and the value of securities slumped 17.8 per cent to N24.6 million from N29.9 million, while the number of deals increased by 9.7 per cent to 34 deals from the 31 deals recorded last Friday.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units sold for N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 68.7 million units transacted for N4.7 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units exchanged for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc followed with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million
By Adedapo Adesanya
The value of the Naira crashed against the United States Dollar by N2.70 0r 0.2 per cent in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Monday, June 29, to N1,383.63/$1 from last Friday’s exchange rate of N1,380.93/$1.
This was influenced by FX pressure on the domestic currency, which also weakened its exchange rate against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment during the session by N6.06 to N1,831.64/£1 from the previous value of N1,824.90/£1. It also depleted the Nigerian currency against the Euro by 45 Kobo, trading at N1,578.03/€1 versus the preceding session’s N1,577.58/€1.
However, it maintained stability against the greenback at the parallel market and the GTBank forex desk yesterday at N1,395/$1 and N1,387/$1, respectively.
Despite the pressure on the Naira, it is still trading within the expected range, as a result of ongoing FX reforms, stronger market liquidity, and increased transparency in the FX market.
Unlike in previous years, the improved stability is reflected in the relatively narrow spread between the official exchange rate and rates in the Bureau de Change (BDC) segment, suggesting that reforms introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) are helping to improve price discovery and reduce distortions.
Also, Nigeria’s external reserves, which provide the apex bank with the capacity to support the Naira and meet the country’s external obligations, have continued to trend upward. Most recent data published on the apex bank’s website showed that reserves rose to $51.29 billion as of June 26, 2026.
In the cryptocurrency market, Bitcoin (BTC) lost momentum after it dropped below $60,000, remaining under its 200-week moving average as currency markets swung following the Japanese Yen slipping to four-decade lows against the US Dollar.
Strategy, the largest public holder of bitcoin, plans to sell more than $1 billion of BTC as part of a $1.25 billion monetisation program, a sharp break from Michael Saylor’s long-held “never sell” stance. BTC traded at $59,463.89.
Dogecoin (DOGE) went down by 0.9 per cent to $0.0723, TRON (TRX) slipped by 0.8 per cent to $0.3196, Cardano (ADA) dipped 0.2 per cent to $0.1446, and Ripple (XRP) dropped 0.1 per cent to close at $1.04.
On the flip side, Solana (SOL) gained 2.5 per cent to sell at $73.99, Ethereum (ETH) improved by 0.4 per cent to $1,587.51, and Binance Coin (BNB) added 0.01 per cent to sell for $552.58, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
By Dipo Olowookere
Panic sell-offs by investors have left the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited losing weight very fast, as it further gave up 1.57 per cent on Monday.
Yesterday, only 17 equities ended on the advancers’ log, while 45 equities finished on the laggards’ chart, representing a negative market breadth index and weak investor sentiment.
All the major sectors of the bourse tasted defeat during the session, with the insurance counter down by 1.33 per cent. The banking space lost 1.22 per cent, the consumer goods index depreciated by 0.63 per cent, the industrial goods segment shed 0.39 per cent, and the energy sector tumbled by 0.06 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) stumbled by 3,682.70 points to 228,366.32 points from 232,049.02 points, and the market capitalisation slipped by N2.363 trillion to N146.542 trillion from N148.905 trillion.
Learn Africa lost 10.00 per cent to close at N9.00, MTN Nigeria also declined by 10.00 per cent to N747.00, Unilever Nigeria crashed by 10.00 per cent to N126.00, Austin Laz dropped 9.94 per cent to settle at N3.17, and Universal Insurance dipped by 9.90 per cent to quote at N28.12.
Conversely, Sovereign Trust Insurance gained 4.08 per cent to end at N2.04, Cornerstone Insurance chalked up 3.45 per cent to trade at N6.00, Neimeth appreciated by 3.03 per cent to N8.50, Livestock Feeds climbed by 1.92 per cent to N7.95, and C&I Leasing grew by 1.90 per cent to N5.35.
Business Post observed a surge in activity level on the first trading day of this week, with the trading volume, value, and number of deals up by 156.37 per cent, 137.50 per cent, and 38.50 per cent.
This was because market participants transacted 996.5 million stocks worth N43.7 billion in 61,813 deals on Monday compared with the 388.7 million stocks valued at N18.4 billion traded in 44,631 deals last Friday.
Ikeja Hotel exchanged 305.5 million shares for N13.2 billion, Access Holdings sold 289.9 million equities worth N6.6 billion, Dangote Sugar traded 29.4 million stocks valued at N1.9 billion, Chams transacted 22.0 million shares worth N87.9 million, and Zenith Bank traded 21.2 million equities for N2.4 billion.
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