By Modupe Gbadeyanka
On Tuesday, June 9, 2020, Nigeria’s Vice President, Mr Yemi Osinbajo, will officially launch the commencement of the Dukia Gold & Precious Metals Raw Materials Buying Program of the country’s first gold and precious metals refining company.
Mr Osinbajo will be joined for the historic event by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr Olamilekan Adegbite.
The official launch will also witness the birth of Dukia–Heritage Bank Gold & Precious Metal Buying Centres, a project in partnership with Heritage Bank Plc for the sourcing and aggregation of gold and other precious metals.
The launch which will be declared open by the Governor of Ekiti State, Mr Kayode Fayemi, who doubles as chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF).
To grace the occasion are other state governors, Ministers, Head of Parastatals, Private sector participants, mining stakeholders and local implementation partners.
In a statement by the organizers of the event, the theme of the seminar will be The Future of Gold and Precious Metals in Africa and the virtual launch of the Commencement of Operations of the Dukia Gold & Precious Metal Refining Company Limited, the Precious Metals Raw Materials Buying Program and the Dukia–Heritage Bank Plc buying Centres and the proprietary Dukia Trading Platform. The launch ceremony will be online via the Zoom – Meet and Chat’ platform, starting at 9.00am on Tuesday June 9, 2020.
According to the Managing Director of Dukia Gold and Precious Metals Refining Co. Ltd, Ms Bose Owolabi, the Lead seminar paper will be delivered by Mr Ibrahim Sagna, Director & Global Head, Advisory and Capital Markets, Afrexim Bank, while other key speakers include Mr Ifie Sekibo, Managing Director, Heritage Bank Plc; Mr. Akin Akeredolu-Ale, Managing Director, Lagos Commodities & Futures Exchange (LCFE); Humphrey Oriakhi, Managing Director, PAC Capital and Mr. Femi Williams, Managing Director, New Waves Ecosystems Limited.
According to her, “Nigeria’s enormous deposits of Gold & Precious Metals have largely remained untapped for various reasons which include the scale of capital investment required to activate required infrastructures, inattention to required policy frameworks, the distractions of fossil fuels’ dependencies. The Federal Ministry of Mines & Steel Development has over the years sought to make the sector attractive to investors with some success and that is why Dukia Gold which is conceptually wholly Nigerian, driven by informed commitment and competence, leveraging on sterling local and global partnering across the spectrum of expertise required to bring it to life sustainably and successfully, going forward”.
“Dukia Gold & Precious Metals Refining Company Limited is at the heart of the delivery of the Dukia Gold Project. It is primed to fulfil a substantial gap in Infrastructure required to achieve the full value chain of operations, i.e. from Mines and Recyclable Gold to Mint and from Mint to Market and it comprises solutions geared towards facilitating and stimulating necessary developments in and of the Gold & Precious Metals’ subsector of the Solid Minerals sector of the Nigerian economy,” she stated.
She went further, “Dukia Gold Project addresses and delivers critical solutions which ensure full Beneficiation of Precious Metals, including the refining of Precious Metals in Nigeria to the highest international standards in such a way that Nigerians and Nigeria can begin to trade and receive fair pricing and value for Precious Metals produced in Nigeria.”
Dukia Gold Project will help to curtail exploitation of local miners by illegal traders who smuggle precious metals out of Nigeria with negligible gain to these local miners and with no returns to the national economy”.
She explained further that when the company kicks off officially, it will focus on adding value to the gold business in Nigeria and West Africa.
Her words, “Dukia Gold and Precious Metal Refining Company Limited sets out to be foremost indigenous Gold & Other Precious Metals Refining & Trading Company.
“It is commencing its nationwide purchasing of gold and precious metals after the launch of designated Heritage Bank Gold and Precious Metals Buying Centres, focusing on adding value to the gold and precious metals industry in Nigeria and West Africa and on delivering a major source of alternative foreign exchange revenues.
“When it becomes fully operational, the refinery will be the first of its kind in West Africa and it will be open for opportunities for artisan miners, gold & precious metals owners and allied enterprises to obtain appropriate financial value for their products among other benefits”.
“The Dukia Gold Project is manifestly a game-changing proposition, an articulate catalyst for the development of the Nigerian Mining Industry.
“The buying programme has commenced and the Buying Centres will be open to the public on August 1, 2020 while phased implementation of the Refinery has also commenced with essential equipment on order from pre-qualified world-leading manufacturers with full implementation to be achieved within 24 months”.
Dukia Gold is being financed by a blend of Equity and Loans from Financial Institutions led by Heritage Bank Plc, supported by PAC Capital as Financial Advisers and Fund Arrangers in due course by the Afrexim Bank.
Adedapo Adesanya