The Federal Government collected N6,957,826,200 mining fees and registered 118 new private mineral buying centres in the first quarter of 2025.
The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, made this known in Abuja, at the second Annual Mining Conference organised by Businessday Newspaper in Abuja, last weekend.
In a statement by the Minister’s media aide, Segun Tomori, Alake said the revenues reflected the outcome of the ministry’s efforts to raise awareness and attract investors.
He said the mining fees collected by licensing parastatal, Mining Cadastral Office (MCO), came from 955 applications for title grants. Six hundred and fifty one were for exploration, 270 for small-scale mining, 49 for quarrying and 24 for reconnaissance permits.
The minister approved 867 applications, including 512 exploration licenses, 295 small-scale mining leases, 60 quarry leases and five mining leases.
He added that the revenues were from various fees, including annual service fees, application processing fees and renewal of titles.
The MCO has also stepped up conflict resolution to reduce petitions arising from overlap and litigation over ownership.
