Tanko Mohammed
The Nigerian-Canadian company, mining gold in Nigeria’s Osun State is to start exporting the precious metal in June this year.
The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr Olamilekan Adegbite, made the announcement in Abuja on Sunday.
Speaking at a forum in Abuja, Adegbite described the Segilola Gold Project as a strategic investment for Nigeria’s economic diversification.
He described the company as a ‘poster child’ and the first foreign investor that was doing genuine and serious business in Nigeria.
Adegbite said that the firm was supposed to have started gold exportation in the first quarter of 2021 but that the date was shifted, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The company will start exporting gold from Nigeria in June,’’ he stated.
According to the minister, the project is being executed by Segilola Resource Operating Ltd., a licensed operator and Canadian company, located in Iperindo in Osun.
He said that the company was listed and quoted on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada, the eighth largest exchange in the world by market capitalisation, commanding some 3.1 trillion dollars.
Adegbite said that the company was making a positive impact, borne out of its desire to ensure compliance with the economic diversification agenda of the Federal Government.
“Mining is a bit capital intensive. So, we need to attract serious players, people who can put in the money and then of course, begin to make money after some investment because it has gestation period.
“Mining is not like trading where you put in your money today and then realise profit tomorrow.
“When you do exploration, it can take a year to three years, then you discover the mineral and then start the exploitation before money begins to roll in.”
