Tinubu unveils lithium plant in Nasarawa

Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu has officially inaugurated what the Federal Government has hailed as West Africa's largest lithium processing plant, located in the Endo community of Nasarawa State. The facility boasts an impressive daily processing capacity of 6,000 metric tonnes and an annual capacity of three million metric tonnes.

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solid minerals remain the enduring backbone of every economy because no technology can thrive without them, hence the priority his administration has accorded the sector.

Represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima at the inauguration, President Tinubu highlighted the critical role of solid minerals as the "enduring backbone of every economy." He stressed that national greatness stems not from abundant natural resources alone, but from the effective conversion of these resources into economic prosperity through discipline, enterprise, technology, and industrial organization. He warned against nations remaining trapped in poverty despite resource wealth due to a failure to develop productive capacity.

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nations do not become great simply because nature has been generous to them but because they convert their natural resources into economic prosperity through discipline, enterprise, technology, skills and industrial organisation.

The plant has already generated significant employment, providing over 1,000 direct jobs and more than 2,000 indirect jobs since commencing operations. Tinubu underscored that national progress requires a deliberate shift from mere extraction to processing, from potential to production, and from raw materials to value-added goods. He stated that the commissioning of the Diamond New Energy project signifies confidence in Nigeria and its "revolutionary reforms."

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What changes a nation is a deliberate movement from extraction to processing, from potential to production, from raw materials to value-added goods, and from isolated investments to integrated industrial ecosystems.

Lithium, identified as a defining mineral of the global energy transition due to its centrality in battery technology, electric mobility, and renewable energy storage, makes this plant particularly significant. The President urged that the inauguration be viewed within the context of a broader national industrial drive, emphasizing that factories represent the tangible outcome of policy, investment, and employment, transforming hope into reality.

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The commissioning of Diamond New Energy projects here in Nasarawa State represents confidence in Nigeria, in Nasarawa State, and in the revolutionary reforms set in place by the present administration.