Following the recent ban on the importation of maize by the Central Bank Of Nigeria, CBN, Barite, a naturally occurring mineral used in the Oil and Gas sector has also joined the list of items banned from importation.
This comes on the heel of a recent disclosure by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr. Olamilekan Adegbite that Nigeria currently imports $300 million worth of barite annually from Morocco. This ban, he disclosed would free up some foreign exchange in an era of falling oil revenue and Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC’s production cuts.
Recall that the oil sector provides about 95% of Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings and about 80% of its budgetary revenues. The dwindling oil revenue has seen a scarcity in foreign exchange in the country and the proposed ban is expected to free up some forex if the words of the minister are anything to go by.
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“We have barite all over the country (in Nasarawa, Cross River States); so, why can’t we produce our barite. There are standards required by the industry and we have it. The first thing is that it is measured by specific gravity; do we have the specific gravity that is required? We do, but the processing is what is missing,” he said.
The minister disclosed that the bagging procedure has to be done right and if Nigeria achieves that, the country will end the foreign importation, and if we get the value chain right, it will enable Nigeria to save on foreign exchange and also create local employment.
The mineral made up of barium sulfate is mainly used in the oil and gas industry as a weighting agent for drilling fluids in the upstream sector. It is also used as added-value applications which include the car, electronics, TV screen, rubber, and glass ceramics and paint industry, radiation shielding, and medical applications (barium meals).
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Similarly, Adegbite disclosed that Nigeria has begun plans to locally refine minerals found in the country in a bid to diversify the country’s economy, citing the gold bars launched by President Buhari during the Presidential Artisanal Gold Mining Development Initiative (PAGMDI) on July 16. Adding that the government is working with a Canadian company to begin the export of Gold in Nigeria’s proven one million ounces of gold by next year.
He said data would have to be collected on the minerals Nigeria has in large quantities through an Aero Magnetic Survey, which is done through a plane flying low to observe mineral data. And that proven surveys have discovered large quantities of gold in Zamfara, Kebbi, Niger, Kaduna, Osun, Kwara, and the FCT.
