In a major move to reposition Kaduna State as a hub for solid mineral development, Governor Uba Sani has established a lithium processing plant.
The groundbreaking facility, located at Kangimi village along the Kaduna-Jos road, is part of a broader strategy to generate increased revenue, create job opportunities, and clamp down on illegal mining activities in the state.
The development was revealed by the Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Abubakar Buba, during the quarterly ministerial press briefing held at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House.
He stated that the new plant has the capacity to process over 30,000 tonnes of lithium per day, positioning Kaduna as a key player in Nigeria’s emerging green economy.
In further efforts to develop the state’s mining sector, the government has engaged Core International Marketing and Management Ltd. to produce a comprehensive Mining Development Roadmap for Kaduna.
Abubakar noted that Kaduna has already earned N30 million in revenue from the mining sector in the last two quarters of the previous year, with higher projections for 2025.
According to him, Kaduna State has more than 70 solid minerals, including lithium, gold, tin, coltan, wolframite, titanium, and iron, adding that the Kaduna Mining Development Company has acquired 18 additional mineral titles.
The commissioner said that there is “tremendous reduction in the illegal mining operation in the state, which is as a result of improved surveillance and the governor’s renewed thinking.
“Out of the Governor’s magnanimity, he graciously agreed that we should form cooperative societies of these illegal miners, so that at the end of the day, they will still be useful to society.
“They will serve as the foot soldiers for any investor that is coming, because they are the indigenes, and they know the terrain better than each and every one of us,” the governor argued.
Speaking on environment and pollution control, the commissioner said that Kaduna State has developed a state policy on climate change and a position statement.
He disclosed that the state is the first subnational that has produced both the policy and position statement in Nigeria, adding that “a lot of states have done the policy document, but Kaduna State is the first to come out with the two.”
“We have trained and empowered 500 youths and women on briquette making in collaboration with Kaduna Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) project,” he said.
“In this part of the world, our people normally use firewood as a source of energy for cooking. We thought that before we ban the use of firewood for cooking and charcoal making, we need to provide an alternative to the people.
“That’s the reason why the state government, in collaboration with ACReSAL, trained over 500 women and youths on how to make briquettes,” he argued.
Abubakar noted that “briquettes can serve as a source of energy to our women and children for cooking without necessarily using the burning down of our trees because the trees serve as a carbon shield for humanity.”
The commissioner also said that the Kaduna State Government distributed clean cooking stoves to 400 women and youths in collaboration with Women’s Initiative on Sustainable Environment (WISE), a nongovernmental organisation.
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