Economy
LCCI Seeks Increased Productivity in Nigeria’s Solid Minerals Sector
By Adedapo Adesanya
*Targets 3% Contribution to GDP
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has called for optimal performance in Nigeria’s solid minerals sector, which contributes less than 0.5 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
In a statement titled LCCI Statement on the Declining Performance of Nigeria’s Solid Minerals Mining Sector, the chamber observed that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) recent reports showed that the Nigerian mining industry has recorded low performance in the last two quarters.
“Despite Nigeria’s enormous mineral resources, the minerals sector is not a major engine of economic growth and receives little investment. The sector produces less than 0.5 per cent of GDP with a limited value chain in the economy. Nigeria’s solid minerals are exported with little or no value added. While Nigeria intends to capitalise on the mining sector’s potential, it faces numerous challenges in mineral beneficiation and value addition,” the organisation said.
According to the NBS data, the mining and quarrying sector’s productivity declined from 8.32 per cent in the third quarter of 2022 to 4.47 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2023 despite its immense potential.
It, therefore, urged, “The government to review the mining industry’s strategy to attract mineral exploration investments, reignite mining project development, accelerate new mineral discoveries, and encourage optimal utilisation of Nigerian mineral resources in line with the Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) principles for sustainable growth.
“Furthermore, we urge the government to address the sector’s funding issues and enable enhanced access to finance for processing value-added minerals-based products by establishing seed funds and special incentives to attract foreign and domestic investors.
“The government should seek innovative ways of revitalising the Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited (ASCL) and the Nigerian Iron Ore and Mining Company (NIOMCO). We have consistently advised that the model of the NLNG management can be adopted for this purpose.
“To ramp up investments in this sector, we need to deploy more relevant research and technology to trace more mineral deposits, and make more relevant data available to interested investors.”
The Director General of LCCI, Mrs Chinyere Almona, said many obstacles had hampered the mining sector, including inadequate infrastructure, regulatory inconsistencies, limited access to financing, and security concerns in mining locations.
Mrs Almona said the challenges have collectively contributed to the sector’s stifling growth, deterring investments, and impeding the sector’s ability to fulfil its role as a catalyst for industrialisation despite the mining roadmap in 2016 and other measures taken to ensure that the sector would contribute 3.0 per cent to GDP by 2025.
The chamber observed that regulatory and legal challenges, including inconsistent policies, unclear land tenures, and issues between federal and state governments, particularly in the collection of royalties and taxes from licensed miners operating in their domains were undermining the performance of the sector.
She said the government should learn from the hindrances presently experienced in the Niger Delta for the failure to allow small-scale crude refineries to operate under set supervision and standards.
She called on the government to “adopt an inclusive strategy on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) aligned with development plans at all levels of government and linked to other national rural sector strategies.
“This will make the solid minerals sector more integrated with other activities that generate more jobs in rural areas. We need to support the mining ecosystem with amenities like electricity, good roads, and water. Mining companies should be engaged to sign Community Development MOUs with the host communities that will help to create a sustainable operating environment.”
“The LCCI believed that these proposed measures could revitalise Nigeria’s mining sector and position it as a critical driver of economic growth and development if they are effectively implemented.
“Their successful execution requires concerted efforts and collaboration among government agencies, private sector entities, civil society organisations, and local communities.
“As stakeholders committed to advancing Nigeria’s mining industry, we stand ready to collaborate with all relevant stakeholders to overcome the existing challenges and unleash the sector’s latent potential for its contribution to our nation’s development,” she said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Shares of First Holdco Plc worth N45.0 billion issued through a private placement have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
A circular issued by the Head of Issuer Regulation Department of the NGX Regulation Limited, Mr Godstime Iwenekhai, disclosed that the equities were admitted for trading at the stock market on Monday.
According to the notice, the additional shares brought for listing to rank pari passu with existing shares of the organisation were 1,021,334,544 units.
These stocks were sold to one of the company’s major shareholders at a unit price of N44.06, amounting to N45.0 billion.
The total issued and fully paid-up shares of First Holdco, as a result of this listing, are now 45,475,027,677 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
“Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 1,021,334,544 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of First Holdco Plc were on Monday, June 22, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares listed on NGX arose from the company’s private placement of 1,021,334,544 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N44.06 per share.
“With the listing of the additional shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of First Holdco Plc have now increased to 45,475,027,677 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 44,453,693,133 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each,” the disclosure stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has approved fresh import licences for petrol and diesel for the third quarter of 2026 (July – September) to prevent potential supply shortages in the domestic market.
According to a report by global energy intelligence firm, Argus Media, the latest approvals were issued to major downstream operators amid declining fuel stock levels and concerns over reduced petrol production at the 700,000 barrels per day Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos.
The move comes as Nigeria continues to balance increasing local refining capacity with the need to guarantee adequate supplies of petroleum products across the country.
According to the Argus report, domestic firms, including AA Rano, AYM Shafa, Bono Energy, Nipco, Matrix Energy and Pinnacle Oil, received permits to import Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, during the July-September period.
The publication further reported that the same companies, with the exception of Nipco, were granted approvals to import Automotive Gas Oil, commonly known as diesel. The fresh approvals follow an earlier batch of petrol import permits issued by the regulator in May, covering about 720,000 metric tonnes.
Quoting a regulatory source, Argus noted that many of the companies granted the latest approvals were among those that had received permits in previous rounds. “These are some of the same ones that previously received the PMS permits,” the source was quoted as saying.
It was also claimed that AA Rano and Matrix Energy each received approvals to import 180,000 metric tonnes of petrol. AYM Shafa received approval for 120,000 metric tonnes, while Pinnacle Oil received a permit covering 150,000 metric tonnes.
For diesel imports, Argus reported that AYM Shafa obtained a permit for 60,000 metric tonnes, while Pinnacle secured approval for 45,000 metric tonnes. The report stated that the import approvals were issued only recently, after being delayed from an initial target date of June 15.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three securities weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.01 per cent on Tuesday, June 23, dragging the market capitalisation down by N25.91 billion to N2.544 trillion from Monday’s N2.570 trillion. Also, the NASD Security Index (NSI) decreased by 43.17 points to 4,239.34 points from 4,282.51 points.
The triplet price losers were Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, which gave up N4.82 to trade at N75.00 per unit versus Monday’s closing price of N79.82 per unit. NASD Plc depreciated by N3.70 to close at N33.30 per share compared with the preceding day’s N37.00 per share, and Nitrox Industrial Gases Plc marginally lost 1 Kobo to sell at N21.41 per unit, in contrast to the previous session’s N21.42 per unit.
Tuesday’s trading data showed that the volume of securities traded by investors retreated by 35.9 per cent to 211,671 units from 330,034 units, and the value of securities fell by 82.9 per cent to N5.6 million from N32.7 million, while the number of deals doubled to 38 deals from 19 deals.
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 worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 68.1 million units transacted for N4.7 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the trading day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, trailed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units exchanged for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units sold for N415.7 million.
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