Nigeria moves to explore 42bn tons bitumen deposit – Minister

The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite, has said Nigeria would harness its 42.74 billion metric tonnes of bitumen reserve to reduce the cost of road construction.

The minister disclosed this at a press conference on the ‘Concession of the Delineated Nigerian Bitumen Blocks’ in Abuja on Monday, preparatory to the process of local bitumen production in Nigeria.

“Once we begin to produce bitumen locally, we will have a stable price that does not fluctuate with the exchange rate,” he said.

He explained that Nigeria had a huge infrastructural deficit with regard to paved roads, saying only about 60,000 km out of 200,000km of road networks was paved, which presented an inherent demand for bitumen.

“This considerable road infrastructure deficit presents an inherent demand for bitumen. Hence, the development of bitumen will lead to import substitution, local content development and increased value addition of the mining industry to the domestic economy, thereby creating jobs and generating revenue for the government,” he said.

Adegbite also said the bitumen in Nigeria is high-grade, easy to mine due to its closeness to the surface and has attracted many prospective investors.

“Nigeria’s population is projected to reach 400 million in 2050, up from the present estimate of 203 million, given the present population growth rate of 2.5 per cent.

“The World Bank projects that Nigeria’s current urbanisation rate of 52 per cent will increase by four per cent annually. Furthermore, 90 per cent of goods, such as food and building materials, are transported by road to meet the demands of this rising population.

“This will increase demand for road infrastructure and put additional strain on the current road network, resulting in higher demand for asphalt for construction and maintenance,” he said.