Economy
Nigeria Rakes N193.59bn from Solid Minerals in 2021
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has disclosed that Nigeria saw a 65.7 per cent or N76.77 billion increase in earnings from the solid minerals sector in 2021 to N193.59 billion from the N116.82 billion achieved in 2020.
This upward trajectory has been on for the past five years, according to a report from the agency.
The Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mr Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, however, lamented that this is still abysmal considering the potential of the sector to the Nigerian economy.
He said this while presenting the solid minerals sector report in Abuja, noting that the organisation “reviewed, ascertained, reconciled and reported all revenues and investment flows to and from the government in the solid minerals sector.”
According to Mr Orji: “The report, which is NEITI’s 12th, covered actual payments by 1,214 companies operating in the sector and receipts by three government agencies, the quantities of minerals that they produced, utilised and exported from the sector, reconciled the physical/financial transactions and undertook special verification on some processes.”
The NEITI report also covered balances payable/receivable from financial inflows and tracked the funds and utilisation meant for the development of solid minerals in Nigeria.
The funds covered in the report include the Natural Resources Development Fund (NRDF), Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF), Ministry of Mines and Steel Development (MMSD), MinDiver Programme, and Solid Minerals Development Funds under the Small and Medium Industries Equity Investment Scheme (SMIEIS), operated through the Bank of Industry (BOI).
The report covered the emerging issues of beneficial ownership and contract transparency and finally made observations and copious recommendations that would inform policy decisions and implementation.
Mr Orji further gave a breakdown of the revenues, which shows that the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, collected a bulk of the revenue of N169.52 billion. The Mining Cadastre Office generated N4.3 billion, while the Mining Inspectorate Department generated a total of N3.62 billion.
The report also observed a consistent year-on-year increase in revenue to the federation account from the solid minerals sector in the past fifteen years (2007-2021).
It puts the total revenue that accrued to the government during these years to N818.04 billion and points out that this is significantly low compared to the economic potential of the sector. It noted that of the N6.62 trillion total government revenue in 2021, the solid minerals sector barely contributed 2.6 per cent.
On production, the solid minerals report disclosed that the total volume of solid minerals used or sold in 2021 was 76.28 million tons, with a royalty payment of N3.57 billion.
The minerals with the largest production volume in the year under review are granite, limestone, laterite, clay, and sand.
Dangote Plc accounted for the highest production in the year under review, with a total production of 28.8 million tons. Bua and Lafarge accounted for 8.4 and 4.3 million tons, respectively, while Zeberced accounted for 3.3 million tons.
The NEITI report also pointed out that Ogun State recorded the highest production in the year under review, with a total of 17.5 million tons, followed by Kogi State with 16.3 million tons and Edo with 8 million tons. The lowest production volume was recorded by Borno State with 25,500 tons.
NEITI also noted that there were increases in the number of licenses issued within the period under review. A total of 2,045 licenses were issued, with exploration licenses accounting for 840 (an increase of 62.79 per cent); Small Scale Mining Lease, SSML, 771; Quarry Lease 255; Reconnaissance Permit 139; and Mining leases 40.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The federal government has been asked by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to suspend the implementation of the controversial tax laws.
In a reaction to the tax reform acts, the president of the group, Mr Afam Osigwe (SAN), the suspension of the laws would allow for a proper investigation into allegations of alterations in the gazetted and harmonised copies.
A member of the House of Representatives, Mr Abdussamad Dasuki, alleged that some parts of the laws passed by the parliament were different from the gazetted copy.
To address the issues raised, the NBA said it is “imperative that a comprehensive, open, and transparent investigation be conducted to clarify the circumstances surrounding the enactment of the laws and to restore public confidence in the legislative process.”
“Until these issues are fully examined and resolved, all plans for the implementation of the Tax Reform Acts should be immediately suspended,” the association declared.
It noted that the controversies “raise grave concerns about the integrity, transparency, and credibility of Nigeria’s legislative process.”
“These developments strike at the very heart of constitutional governance and call into question the procedural sanctity that must attend lawmaking in a democratic society,” it noted.
“Legal and policy uncertainty of this magnitude has far-reaching consequences. It unsettles the business environment, erodes investor confidence, and creates unpredictability for individuals, businesses, and institutions required to comply with the law. Such uncertainty is inimical to economic stability and should have no place in a system governed by the rule of law.
“Nigeria’s constitutional democracy demands that laws, especially those with profound economic and social implications, emerge from processes that are transparent, accountable, and beyond reproach. Anything short of this undermines public trust and weakens the foundation upon which lawful governance rests.
“We therefore call on all relevant authorities to act swiftly and responsibly in addressing this controversy, in the overriding interest of constitutional order, economic stability, and the preservation of the rule of law,” the organisation stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Demand for hot stocks, including MRS Oil Plc, buoyed the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.52 per cent on Tuesday, December 23.
The energy company was one of the three price gainers for the session as it chalked up N19.69 to sell at N216.59 per share versus the previous day’s value of N196.90 per share.
Further, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained N2.95 to close at N56.75 per unit versus N53.80 per unit and Golden Capital Plc appreciated by 84 Kobo to N9.29 per share from Monday’s N8.45 per share.
Consequently, the market capitalisation went up by N10.95 billion to N2.125 trillion from N2.125 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rose by 18.31 points to 3,570.37 points from 3,552.06 points.
Yesterday, the NASD bourse recorded a price loser, the Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS), which gave up 17 Kobo to close at N33.70 per unit against the previous trading value of N33.87 per unit.
The volume of securities traded at the session went down by 97.6 per cent to 297,902 units from the previous day’s 12.6 million units, the value of securities decreased by 98.5 per cent to N10.5 million from N713.6 million, and the number of deals remained flat at 32 deals.
By value, Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc ended as the most actively traded stock on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units exchanged for N16.4 billion. This was followed by Okitipupa Plc, which traded 178.9 million units valued at N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.
In terms of volume, also on a year-to-date basis, InfraCredit Plc led the chart with a turnover of 5.8 billion units traded for N16.4 billion. Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc ranked second with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, while Impresit Bakolori Plc followed with the sale of 536.9 million units valued at N524.9 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
It was another bullish trading session for the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited as it closed higher by 0.59 per cent on Tuesday.
The market further rallied due to continued interest in large and mid-cap stocks on the exchange by investors rebalancing their portfolios for the year-end.
Yesterday, Aluminium Extrusion sustained its upward trajectory after it further appreciated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, as Austin Laz gained 9.81 per cent to close at N2.91, Custodian Investment improved by 9.69 per cent to N38.50, and First Holdco soared by 9.35 per cent to N50.30.
Conversely, Royal Exchange declined by 7.22 per cent to N1.80, Champion Breweries shrank by 6.57 per cent to N15.65, NASCON lost 5.36 per cent to trade at N105.05, Sovereign Trust Insurance depreciated by 5.28 per cent to N3.77, and Japaul went down by 4.51 per cent to N2.33.
At the close of business, 29 shares ended on the gainers’ table and 27 shares finished on the losers’ log, representing a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.
This raised the All-Share Index (ASI) by 895.06 points to 153,354.13 points from 152,459.07 points and lifted the market capitalisation by N579 billion to N97.772 trillion from the previous day’s N97.193 trillion.
VFD Group finished the day as the busiest stock after it recorded a turnover of 192.0 million units worth N2.1 billion, GTCO exchanged 63.5 million units valued at N5.6 billion, Access Holdings traded 49.8 million units for N1.0 billion, First Holdco sold 45.8 million units valued at N2.3 billion, and Secure Electronic Technology transacted 38.3 million units worth N28.4 million.
In all, market participants bought and sold 677.4 million units valued at N20.8 billion in 27,589 deals compared with the 451.5 million units worth N13.0 billion traded in 33,327 deals on Monday, showing an improvement in the trading volume and value by 50.03 per cent and 60.00 per cent apiece, and a shortfall in the number of deals by 17.22 per cent.
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