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| Solid Mineral Collection |
If you have never heard, Plateau State is a theatre of sorts, boasting of diversity in a couple of areas that stretch from tribes, vegetables and mineral deposits. It is the Mecca of solid minerals and, potentially, oil and gas close to its border with Taraba State. Thus, Plateau is a colourful theatre of mineral wealth.
Before the last twenty years, Plateau has been known
largely for tin and columbite, leading to its epithet of the Tin City. While
tin mining lasted, other minerals drew no attention, since they had no economic
value. However, with increased research and innovations, the economic
significance of these minerals has soared, especially with the rise of monsters
of technology like China. The need for wind turbines, electric vehicles, solar
panels, medical devices, lights, lasers, satellites, fibre optics, batteries,
better telescopes, as well as mobile phones, computers, etc, has been the
impetus propelling the commercial values of the other minerals to the clouds.
Thus, the breadth of the minerals that Plateau State can supply to the world
has widened significantly. A large chunk of these minerals embraces cassiterite,
columbite, pumice, garnet, rutile, wolframite, galena, sphalerite, fluorite,
feldspar, aquamarine, mica, ilmenite, sapphire, quartz, amethyst, lithium,
zircon, beryl, monazite, granite, etc.
Now, here is the ugly side of the Plateau story: it
is one state with modest subventions, a situation that frightens anyone who
knows what Plateau’s subterranean resources are. Just as oil-producing states get
13% derivation for oil taken from their land every month, solid
mineral-producing states are also entitled to 13% derivation for any mineral
taken from their lands. By comparison, 13% derivation to solid mineral states
is trivial and changes nothing, ensuring that the economic plights of the
affected states remain what it has always been. Take the Plateau-approved
budget of N294 billion for 2024, translating to an average of N24 billion per
month. This is inclusive of 13% derivation. It is miserable compared to what
goes into the coffers of a small, albeit oil-producing state like Bayelsa,
whose budget for the year 2024 stands at N489 billion, translating to an
average of N40 billion per month.
The huge gap between oil-producing states and solid
mineral-producing states comes from the little attention the Federal Government
has paid to solid minerals since the discovery of oil. The oil industry is so
organized that only huge corporations like Shell, Mobil and Chevron carry out
explorations, drilling and production. It makes transparency easy since the
Federal Government is a partner in all these corporations and knows exactly the
“country” share of the profits. In the solid mineral industry, though, this
organization is absent. Companies simply pay for leases and get down to mining,
paying paltry royalties to locals and taxes to the Federal Government. Whatever
remains belongs to the company. What makes matters even hazier is the inability
of the Federal Government to properly police the industry to prevent illegal
mining, a category that falls below the tax radar. Thus, while the minerals are
going, all tiers of government, including the Federal Government are getting
robbed. This absence of transparency ensures that the 13% derivation paid
doesn’t reflect the degree of mining activities taking place in the states.
In 2023, the Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake,
was quoted as saying that the solid mineral industry can contribute 50% of
Nigeria’s GDP. Though third parties estimate that the value of Nigeria’s solid
minerals reservoir stands at $750 billion, Mr Alake believes that this is
conservative and with deeper investigation, it should run into trillions of
dollars. Thus, proper organization of the industry will ensure that states with
solid mineral wealth, including Plateau, begin to have enough revenue to deal
with the economic challenges they face.
