Despite holding one of Africa’s largest deposits of lithium — a mineral crucial to electric vehicles and renewable energy — Nigerian investors have been largely sidelined in the booming lithium trade. The mineral, worth an estimated $34 billion in Nigeria, has attracted massive foreign interest, particularly from Chinese companies now leading mining and processing operations across Nasarawa, Kaduna, Niger, and other states.
Investigations by Financial Vanguard revealed that Chinese-led firms such as Avatar and Ganfeng have established large-scale lithium processing plants in the North Central region, which holds about 70% of the country’s proven reserves. Avatar already runs a 4,000-metric-ton-per-day facility, while Ganfeng is nearing completion of a 6,000 MT plant. Most of the extracted lithium is reportedly shipped to battery manufacturing hubs in China, India, Japan, and South Korea, leaving little domestic value addition.
Experts warn that Nigeria risks becoming a raw material supplier rather than a producer of high-value battery products unless urgent measures are taken to involve local investors. Executive Director of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprises (CPPE), Dr. Muda Yusuf, said Nigeria lacks both awareness and capacity to fully participate in the lithium value chain. He emphasized the need for government-backed investment, bankable geological data, and stronger security around mineral-rich regions to attract serious investors.
Yusuf also noted that while global finance is moving toward green energy investments, Nigeria must first develop its primary lithium production before implementing local processing policies. “You can’t start by forcing investors to process when the sector isn’t even developed yet,” he said.
Similarly, the National President of the Miners Association of Nigeria (MAN), ‘Dele Ayanleke, called for regulatory reforms to encourage partnerships between foreign companies and Nigerian investors. He warned that allowing foreign dominance could mirror the Congo experience, where external interests control most of the mining sector.
In Nasarawa, however, the state government is setting the pace. Governor Abdullahi Sule’s administration has implemented mining-friendly policies, attracting massive Chinese investments, including the $200 million Ganfeng factory — one of West Africa’s largest lithium projects.
But a senior official from the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development admitted that there is currently no specific national policy on lithium. “Lithium is treated like every other mineral,” the official said, highlighting the policy gap that continues to limit Nigeria’s participation in the $92 billion global lithium market.
