Sitting L-R: Co-founder of the Africans for Africa Initiative, Suleiman Zakari, and the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Steron International Resources Limited, Sadiq Abubakar Omar, sign the Memorandum of Understanding between both organisations during the African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit in Abuja, while the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake (third left), looks on. Credit: MMSD
A major push to position Nigeria as a key player in the global critical minerals market gained momentum on Thursday as the Africans for Africa Initiative and Steron International Resources Limited signed a strategic agreement aimed at accelerating the development of lithium and rare earth element deposits in the country.
The Memorandum of Understanding, signed on the sidelines of the African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit in Abuja, officially designates Steron’s lithium and rare earth project in Wasa as a potential pipeline project under the AFA Mining Fund I, a private equity vehicle established to support African-owned mining ventures.
The partnership represents a significant milestone for Nigeria’s mining sector, coming at a time when countries around the world are scrambling to secure supplies of critical minerals needed for electric vehicles, renewable energy technologies, battery storage systems, electronics, and other advanced manufacturing industries.
