Solid minerals revenue hits N101bn in nine months

File photo: Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake.

Nigeria’s solid minerals revenue rose by 95.2 per cent to N101.11bn in the first nine months of 2026, compared with N51.79bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2025, as increased mineral royalty payments boosted government receipts from the sector.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s solid minerals revenue collection report, analysed on Sunday, showed that the country generated N16.31bn in June 2026, representing a 243.7 per cent increase from the N4.75bn collected in June 2025.

The revenue generated from the solid minerals sector is paid into an account domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria, where collections from fees, mineral royalties and other miscellaneous receipts are warehoused. The account provides a channel to track government earnings from mining activities and monitor remittances from operators across the sector.

The June performance meant that revenue from the sector more than tripled year-on-year, highlighting an improvement in government collections from mining activities amid efforts to diversify the economy away from its dependence on crude oil.

The CBN figures showed that total collections between January and September 2026 stood at N101.11bn, compared with N51.79bn in the corresponding nine months of 2025. This represented an increase of N49.33bn within one year.

However, the revenue performance was heavily driven by royalties rather than fees paid by mining operators.

An analysis of the 2026 figures showed that mineral royalties accounted for N66.12bn, representing 65.4 per cent of the total N101.11bn collected during the nine-month period.

Fees collected by the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development contributed N33.54bn, or 33.2 per cent, while miscellaneous revenue accounted for N1.45bn.

The figures suggest that payments linked to mineral extraction and sales have become the dominant source of receipts recorded in the sector, although collections remained volatile from month to month.

June’s N16.31bn revenue comprised N12.62bn in mineral royalties, N3.66bn in ministry fees and N32.12m in miscellaneous revenue.

Royalty payments alone represented about 77.4 per cent of the month’s collections, indicating that the bulk of the revenue came from payments associated with minerals extracted and sold by operators.

The revenue collection report showed that July recorded the highest monthly performance during the period, with receipts rising to N29.13bn.

Of this amount, N25.78bn came from mineral royalties, while fees contributed N2.41bn. Miscellaneous revenue accounted for N938.29m.

However, collections dropped sharply to N8.47bn in August before edging up to N8.78bn in September.

The August figure was particularly weak, with ministry fees falling to just N70.84m, while royalties contributed N8.04bn and miscellaneous receipts stood at N362.19m.

In September, the ministry generated N1.77bn from fees, while mineral royalties contributed N6.90bn. Miscellaneous revenue accounted for N116.98m.

The figures showed that July’s collection was more than three times the amount recorded in August, underscoring the uneven nature of revenue generation in the mining sector.

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has repeatedly defended the administration’s reforms, arguing that stronger enforcement, licensing reforms and the formalisation of mining activities are improving revenue generation.

Nigeria generated N68.1bn in total solid minerals revenue in 2025, according to figures presented by the ministry, while remittances into the Federation Account reached N63.92bn in the first 11 months of that year.

Speaking at the Africa Commodities Conference and Exhibition in Abuja in May 2026, Alake said the sector was beginning to record measurable gains from government policies.

“Those are not yet the numbers of a mature mining giant, but they are the numbers of a sector that is gaining fiscal traction through reform, enforcement and better administration,” he said.