By SUNDAY ABBA, Abuja
The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) has been urged to consider banning importation of barite and other critical minerals that are produced locally to standards and mandate their use by international oil companies (IOCs) and other corporate bodies, and individuals that use the minerals for production.
Patrick Odiegwu. Secretary, Association of Miners and Processors of Baryte (AMAPOB) made the call to the federal government, FG, at a press conference of mining operators, comprising Presidents of Associations of Investors and Professionals, representing the critical mass of mining companies, investors and professionals in the industry, led by the President of the Miners Association of Nigeria (MAN) Dele Ayanleke.
According to him, the barite subsector of the Nigerian mines and minerals industry is producing more than enough of the essential minerals to international standards locally, yet the international oil companies that supposed to be the major off-takers keep importing the product.
He said, “We cannot have a product that is found almost everywhere in this country that can be mined and be taken through the value chain of our industry, and the same product, day in, day out, is being imported into this country.
“When those products get imported into this country, Nigerians don’t get the jobs the banking sector is looking for money which they can get.
“We are calling on the President of this country, who serves as the Minister of petroleum Resources, to read the riot act to the IOCs and everybody that uses barite In this country.”
He noted with regret that for over 50 years now that oil and gas were being produced in the country, 95 per cent of the barite that is used were imported, citing the trend as a breach of the Local Content Act passed in 2010 which, according to him, clearly stated that 60 per cent of barite should be sourced within Nigeria.
“That’s where I think the federal government, including the state and local governments where these minerals are found, should sit up.
So we’re clearly putting it to the Honourable Minister to get people that use barite to use Nigerian barite. They must, because that’s what the law states, and we are saying that barite miners should not continue to harvest poverty when we know we have the quantity and quality that.meet the standards, even more than enough.
“In fact, some of our companies that are carrying out exploration has over 10 million metric tonnes of barite. If you have 10 million metric tonnes of barite, that will serve the oil and gas industry in the next 20 years, from one company.
Now this thing is all over Nigeria. How can we continue like this? How can Nigeria be talking of hunger when there is something that can create employment.
He emphasised that the local content measure implementation should not be reduced to barite alone, but across all the mineral groups that are produced to standard in the country.
He called on the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, MAN, to interface with the Miners Association of Nigeria, MAN, “so that we can look at what their members are using, and see how we’re going to start developing it locally, because that is how nations are built”.
The stakeholders expressed serious concern over some developments in the minerals and mining sector that it believed are counter-productive in the ongoing efforts by government to reposition the sector for economic diversification and national development.
The stakeholders urged the federal government to address issues plaguing the sector such as undue interference in mining by state authorities, to the extent that states have established ministries, departments or agencies (MDAs) for minerals and mining; non-inclusion in review of mining laws; extrajudicial acts and usurpation of the functions of the state mining officers by the mining marshals; unilateral fixing of mining fees, royalty rates among others.
On the issue of N2.5 billion with the Bank of Industry, Prof. Akinade Olatunji, President, Nigerian Mining and Geosciences Society (NMGS), who spoke for the group, said the stringent conditions spelt out by the bank for miners to access the fund could not be met by members.
Hence the stakeholders suggested that the money be released to the Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF), adding that it is better invested in acquiring mining equipment to be leased out to members at cheaper rate.
They stressed that even giving the loans to individuals now at the current rate may not serve its original purpose due to the high inflation that has set in over time.