For more than a century, the major occupation of the people of Adamawa is farming – cattle rearing, fishing and poultry – it’s incredible to note that the Northeast state has mineral resources and precious metals in abundance.
Adamawa is among the states with different natural resources in Nigeria scattered in different parts of the country. The state is sufficiently endowed with natural resources ranging from industrial metals to various gemstones
Most of these minerals are yet to be exploited. Statistically, the level of exploitation of these minerals is zero apart from illegal mining by the locals which happens in some villages and rural areas.
Although Nigeria’s government came up with the National Policy on solid minerals to ensure the orderly development of the mineral resources, it’s yet another policy on paper.
Occupying a land area of about 36,917 square kilometres with 21 council areas, Adamawa isn’t just large for nothing. This article explores the solid mineral resources in Adamawa state and the areas where God-given resources can be found.
Tantalite
Tantalite has been discovered in three locations in the state: Ganye, Lamurde, and Mubi have large deposits of the chemical element tantalum.
Tantalite is used in making computer chips, telecommunications and chemical equipment, and it is also a major source of tantalum for niobium among others.
The quantity of tantalite in Adamawa has not been quantified and has not been explored.
Limestone
Limestone is one of the major materials for the manufacturing of fertilizer, cement, road building and other building materials. It is also used for smelting metallic ores.
Limestone can be found Yola South, Guyuk, Demsa, Numan, and Fufore parts of the Adamawa. According to data from Adamawa State Planning Commission (ADSPC), there are 72.9 million metric tons of limestone in the areas where limestone is located.
Cassiterite
Also known as tinstone, cassiterite is a heavy, hard tin dioxide, and metallic which is the major ore of tin. Cassiterite is colourless when pure and brown or black when iron impurities are present.
It is used in fireproofing, gun metals, and bearing metals among others.
Location: Cassiterite is available inYola South, Jada, Lamurde, Ganye, and Mubi. The quantity of cassiterite in the areas mentioned is unknown.
Lead
Again, Ganye, Mubi North, Jada, and Yola South should be your location for an investor who wants to invest in Adamawa’s lead mining sector.
Lead is one of the materials for making friction metal, alloys-soldering, bronzes, pipes, and sheets and it’s is useful in making insecticides and guns.
Diamond
Diamond is one of the rare precious stones on earth because of their beauty and their valuable industrial use.
Diamond’s property of hardness is useful to drill, grind or cut materials, no wonder some blades used for cutting and drills in the industry use diamonds.
In 2014, a former governor of the state Murtala Nyako revealed that Adamawa has a large number of diamonds, though he didn’t reveal the location where this precious stone is deposited.
TheCable quoted him as saying:
“in fact, the recent survey by Russians in Adamawa showed we have a commercial quantity of diamond. We also have lots of coal and you know that where there is coal, there is gas.”
Diamond is in the class of other precious stones like emerald, sapphire, and ruby.
Bitumen
Apart from Ondo, Ogun where bitumen is found, Adamawa State also has a large quantity of the materials used in road construction. It is also used in mastic flooring for factories and joint filling material.
Bitumen is also known as asphalt.
Gold
Research by a Swiss firm BTP Swiss Sovereign Asset in conjunction with Adamawa Mining Company revealed that Adamawa State has a gold deposit waiting to be explored.
Gold has several uses including medals, jewellery, electronics and computer. Central banks of several countries around the world also invest in gold as one of the inflationary measures.
For instance, United States Federal Reserve has the highest gold reserves in North and South America. The country also has the largest reservoir of gold in the world.
The location of gold in Adamawa is unknown at the time of this report.
Magnesite
Magnesite is found in Gombi Local Government Area of Adamawa State. Though the deposit of magnesite is in abundant in this area, the state is yet to quantify it.
Caution: We urge investors to be security cautious in Gombi. It is one of the areas that was badly hit by insurgents in the northeast region. Though the place is gradually becoming peaceful, Boko Haram fighters are known for attempting to reclaim their former strongholds.
Barytes
Barytes is mostly used for drilling mud and forms part of the materials used as chemicals for paints, and fillers, and also used in the paper industry, and cosmetics.
Barytes is abundantly located in Mubi, Gandfu, Jada, and Tola
Kaolin
Mubi, Gombi, and Ganye are the main locations where kaolin is found in Adamawa. It is used in the making of paints, fertilizer, and rubber and paper factories also find kaolin useful for their products.
Gypsum
There is 5mm tonnes of gypsum in Yola South, Lamurde, Guyuk, and Numan. Specifically, this will be a good place for investors who are looking for raw materials for paints, cement, chalk, and fertilizer.
Uranium
Commonly associated with the manufacturing of nuclear weapons, fuel for nuclear power plants and the nuclear reactors that run naval ships and submarines, uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92.
It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons
Platinum
For many people, gold is the most expensive asset, but it is unbelievable to find out that the most valued precious metal is platinum. It is valued higher than gold.
Platinum is purer, rarer, and has a higher density than gold. For instance, platinum rings are more expensive than gold rings because platinum gold requires more of metal than gold rings.
For instance, 95 per cent pure platinum ring would around $800 or more, according to survival freedom
The good part is: You can find this precious metal in Adamawa state. The quantity of platinum in Adamawa is not known at this time, the discovery shows that the state is sitting on solid and precious metals worth billions of dollars.
Also found in the Northeast state are barite and zinc
Exploration of Solid Mineral Resources in Adamawa
One would have expected each state in Nigeria to be self-sufficient considering the solid and minerals resources and industrial gemstones found in every part of the country.
Unfortunately, the 36 states look away and remain dependent on the federal government for monthly allocation. Adamawa state, a North-East geopolitical zone in Nigeria, is not an exception.
Adamawa has more than 10 solid mineral resources deposited in every part of the state, yet the government pay lip service to its exploration.
Sometimes in 2016, the state government disclosed that it had signed an MoU with a Swiss firm to start the exploration of gold, diamond, and bitumen among other solid minerals, since then, nothing has been heard about the partnership.
On one hand, the activities of Boko Haram insurgents in some local governments and villages make the security situation fragile thereby hampering the exploration of the God-given resources.
How would the Swiss firm, BTP Swiss Sovereign Asset, begin an exploration where the safety of the company’s workers is not guaranteed?
Although the state government through the Adamawa Mining Company boasted that it had obtained more than five mining licenses from Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, the mining process has become another project that has been swept under the carpet.
What happens if the oil monies that Nigeria’s government and the state governments heavily rely on varnish one day?
Already, revenues from crude oil are no longer enough as FG takes money from the vault of the Central Bank of Nigeria and is indebted to several international monetary organisations.
We hope that the Adamawa state government would wake from its slumber as early as possible to start exploring the solid mineral resources in the state.
Recap:
There are at least 15 solid and mineral resources in Adamawa State which have zero legal exploration at the time of publication.
For locals and foreigners looking to invest in Nigeria’s mining sector, mining is only allowed after obtaining licenses from Abuja and other necessary permits from the state government.
Sources:
- Adamawa State Planning Commission. “Popular Solid Minerals”. adspc.ad.gov.ng
- TheCable (April 27, 2014). “We have diamond in Adamawa, says Nyako”. thecable.ng
- Jim James. “How Much Does a Platinum Ring Cost? | Are They Worth Buying?” survivalfreedom.com
