The Federal Government is owed about N1.06 billion in annual service fees by 238 companies, according to the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).
This information was included in the recently launched NEITI Industry report for the Solid Minerals Industry for 2021.
“From the IA review of MCO’s record of mineral title holders, it was observed that 238 companies holding 289 valid licences had outstanding payment of N1.06bn for annual service fees,” the report read.
The amount owed increased from N654.28m in 2020, according to the report.
It added, “From the records made available by MCO, 233 companies holding 284 licences still have outstanding annual service fees of N654.28m as at December 31, 2020. As at December 31, 2022, the outstanding liabilities of these companies was N1.06bn.”
It was also disclosed that out of a total of 1,214 companies operating in the sector, 914 paid royalties.
Additionally, 121 firms met the set materiality criteria and were in charge of 92% of the total royalty payments out of the 914 that made payments.
It disclosed that the total receipts by federal, states, and local government agencies was N193.59bn in 2021.
Additionally, during the reviewed year, 2,045 licenses were issued, and 76,277,187 tons of minerals were produced in total.
It was also noted that the minerals with the highest volume of production in the year under consideration were sand, clay, laterite, granite, and limestone.
The report added, “Analysis by company shows that the major contributor to production are Dangote, BUA and Lafarge, with a combined production quantity and royalty payment of 41,438,553 tons and N1.37bn respectively.
“Notably, Dangote accounted for a significant share of total production (37.72 per cent) and royalty (25.55 per cent). These figures underscore the significant role played by these major companies in the mining sector.”
The report noted that Ogun recorded the highest production in the year under review, with a total of 17.5million tons, followed by Kogi with 16.3 million tons, and Edo with 8 million tons.
The Executive Secretary of NEITI, Dr. Ogbonnaya Orji, said during the report’s unveiling in Abuja that the 2021 figure showed a rise of N60.32 billion, or 51.89 percent, when compared to the revenue flows of N116.82 billion in 2020.
However, he said that the 2021 figure was still appalling when you consider the sector’s potential contribution to the Nigerian economy.
The report, according to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abass, who was present at the unveiling through the Chairman of the House Committee on Urban Development, Awaji-inombek Abiante, said it is essential for cleaning up the extractive industry in order to increase job and revenue creation.
Ada Peter
