Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Mr. Dele Alake, and United States Assistant Secretary for Energy and Natural Resources, Geoffrey Pratt, have agreed to put in place a working team from both countries to explore financing for credit to mining firms and infrastructures.
Pratt, who paid a visit to Alake, said his visit followed an earlier meeting with President Bola Tinubu who has been seeking the support of the US in the quest for Nigeria’s economic revival, according to the Special Adviser to the Honourable Minister, Kehinde Bamigbetan.
Pratt said the US would like to be Nigeria’s partner of choice in developing the solid minerals sector and was interested in the reforms announced by the Minister in his address at the plenary of the conference.
Noting that the United States has various institutions and laws which encourage direct foreign investment, Pratt said he would notify the agencies to collaborate with their Nigerian counterparts to work out a framework.
For his part, Alake said the move was a welcome development as the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development had rolled out a seven-pronged agenda to reposition the sector.
He recalled the establishment of the new Solid Minerals Development Company, which is responsible for the upholding of safety standards of mine operations in Nigeria.
He further observed that the credit facility and foreign direct investment promised by the United States would be in the mutual interest of both countries because energ-enabling minerals such as lithium are critical to the global crusade for clean energy and necessary for the manufacture of electric cars.
Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Solid Minerals Fund, Hajiya Fatima Shinkafi, commended the US for investing in mining infrastructures in Central Africa, urging a similar partnership with Nigeria.
