President Bola Tinubu has commissioned a new lithium processing plant located in Endo, Nasarawa Local Government Area
The President commissioned the Diamond New Energy lithium mining and processing plant on Thursday.
The plant, built by Diamond New Energy, a Chinese firm, in partnership with the Nasarawa State Government, has a processing capacity of 6,000 metric tonnes of lithium per day and represents an investment of about $250 million.
It was constructed in collaboration with Chinese firms Jiuling and Canmax, whose combined global production capacity accounts for more than 20 per cent of the world’s lithium market.
The commissioning was attended by the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake; Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule; the Emir of Keffi; Senator Ahmed Aliyu Wadada; the Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Princess Margaret Elayo; traditional rulers; and officials of the investing companies.
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Represented at the event by Vice President Kashim Shettima, President Tinubu said the commissioning demonstrated that Nigeria was ready to move beyond the extraction of raw minerals to full local processing and value addition.
He said the plant formed part of the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda to reposition mining as a driver of industrialisation, job creation and economic diversification, noting that lithium remains central to battery technology and the global energy transition.
President Tinubu commended Governor Sule’s leadership, describing him as a governor who has created an environment where investors can operate with confidence. He added that Nasarawa State’s peaceful and inclusive character had made it an attractive destination for serious investment.
Governor Sule, in his remarks, thanked President Tinubu and the investors for their confidence in the state. He noted that Nasarawa is endowed with lithium, zinc, copper, gemstones, cobalt, gold, marble and iron ore, in addition to its strong agricultural potential.
He said the state government had worked to restore security in the once-volatile Endo community, making it possible for the project to take off, and urged the investors to ensure that their operations translated into direct benefits for host communities.
The Minister of Solid Minerals Development said the commissioning validated the ministry’s seven-point reform agenda, particularly its local value-addition policy, which prohibits the export of raw minerals and mandates processing within Nigeria before export.
He disclosed that the Federal Government’s Mining Marshals had apprehended more than 300 illegal miners and secured the conviction of over 20 collaborators since the security outfit was established. He added that more than 250 artisanal mining cooperatives had been formalised nationwide to curb illegal mining and improve access to formal financing.
Alake said the ministry no longer issues mining titles or licences without a concrete local processing plan, adding that the Diamond New Energy plant was evidence that Nigeria’s solid minerals reforms were yielding results within a short period, having flagged off the project’s groundbreaking about a year ago.
Senator Ahmed Wadada, the APC governorship candidate for Nasarawa State, commended the investment but called for the full lithium value chain, including battery production, to eventually be domiciled in the state.
He also disclosed that he is sponsoring a bill to upgrade the Federal Polytechnic Nasarawa into a university of mining and engineering technology to build local capacity for the sector.
Speaking at the event, the Nasarawa State Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Princess Margaret Elayo, said the project aligned with the environmental sustainability pillar of the Renewed Hope Agenda. She stressed that the state government requires mining operators to adhere to global best practices in land reclamation, biodiversity protection and community welfare.
The Emir of Keffi commended Governor Sule for transforming Nasarawa State from an artisanal mining economy into an industrial mining hub of international standard, describing the governor as a gift to the state and the nation.
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Jiuling and Canmax, Mr Yu Chongqiang, said Nigeria was chosen as the company’s first project location in Africa because of the country’s favourable security environment and investor-friendly government policies. He described the Nasarawa facility as the largest lithium processing project currently operating in West Africa.
The commissioning forms part of the Federal Government’s ongoing efforts, in partnership with the Nasarawa State Government, to reposition the solid minerals sector as a major driver of economic diversification. The reforms include the local value-addition policy, the Mining Marshals security initiative, and the formalisation of artisanal mining cooperatives across the country.
