Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has praised the operators of the Segilola Gold Project in Osun State for their efforts in the country’s endeavor to diversify its economy beyond oil while also calling for increased investment in the mining industry.
This was said by the Vice President during his remarks during the sixth Nigeria Mining Week, which was held in Abuja and had as its topic “success and achievement in the Nigerian mining sector.” The administration is dedicated to prioritizing the development of Nigeria’s mineral resources as one of the important determinants for the nation’s economic development, according to Osinbajo, who attended the event in the president Muhammadu Buhari’s place.
Osinbajo said, “Nigeria, for the first time, has a world-class gold mine running in Osun State, Segilola Gold Project, operated by Thor Explorations Limited and others around the country. I believe that this sector when fully developed, will outstrip other sectors in export earnings and opportunities.’’
Segun Lawson, MD/CEO of Thor Explorations Limited, claims that the company has benefited from the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development’s support despite the ministry’s continued use of innovative strategies to create an environment that would support large-scale commercial mining operations in Nigeria.
“We have just been through a very transformational 24 months, going from an exploration company, through a bankable feasibility stage and going through the construction of our first gold mine which coincidentally, happens to be Nigeria’s first large-scale gold mine. While we are probably the only known gold resource in Nigeria, we think that Segilola is just the start of the significant potential here in Nigeria.
“We are very encouraged by what the ministries and the government are doing to uncover more resources here. We see this as an opportunity not just to stay at Segilola but to grow in the country as a miner, as a producer and hopefully, in the next two or three years we will be here talking about our second gold mine in Nigeria” Lawson stated.
Lawson added that as part of its sustainability initiatives within its communities, Segilola is committed to encouraging eco-friendly operations.
The Minister, Olamilenkan Adegbite, gave an explanation of how the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development is negotiating the curve of luring new investment into the industry, “the ministry crystalizes different strategies to address the lack of geological data, weak institutional capacity, low revenue generation, informal mining and community issues on the national steel assets. The Ministry has recorded some significant achievement that has defined a growth strategy for the Nigerian mining sector.”
