Description

Nigeria is blessed with abundant mineral resources, which are from time immemorial formed the backbone of the nation’s economic and industrial development aspirations. Prior to independence, the nation’s mineral raw material resources contributed immensely to the export earnings of the nation.

For over three decades, the Country has continued to depend entirely on oil for her revenue and the volatile nature of the oil market has made it imperative for us to diversify the mono-product economy through exploitation and processing of our abundant solid mineral resources.

The clamour for resource control being advocated by states with petroleum resources in their domain makes it imperative for us to develop, exploit, process and utilize our solid minerals – particularly Non-metallic Minerals as every part of this country is blessed with one or more solid mineral that could yield substantial revenue for sustainable development.

Exploitation of the Non-metallic Minerals has not attained the desired level, mainly because of the various constraints associated with their exploitation, development and processing for utilization. Many of the non-metallic minerals, which are vital to the industrial take off of the country, have been found in commercial quantities within the country.

They include limestone, dolomite, marble, kaolin, barite, diatomite, feldspar, quartz and silica sands, gypsum, talc, silimanite, kyanite, phosphate, salt and bentonite.

Nigeria has extensive deposits of good quartz silica sands. Many of which are associated with the coastal plain of sedimentary areas in the southern part of the country, although deposits also occur in some inland areas.

The major silica sand deposits in the country are located at Ughella–Delta State, Igbokoda, Ondo State, Baure, Katsina State, Badagry, Lagos State, and along the sandy shore line of the Atlantic, some inland deposit are also reported at Shebu, Plateau State and Ilaro, Ogun State.

Silica Sand/Quartz constitutes one of the most readily available geological materials used in industries and factories such as glass manufacturing companies. Silica Sand/Quartz are said to consist of high optimal percentage of silicon dioxide (SiO2) which is a very good chemically stable element and it remains almost the same no matter the series of cycles it may have gone through, either in transportation or re-deposition.

Quartz is silica occurring alone in pure state. Silica/glass sand on the other hand are products of weathering, erosion and transportation by rivers or/and the sea. Naturally occurring silica sands may contain some undesirable impurities like accessory haematite, rutile and dolomite etc.

Glass Sand is used in the production of various glass products: which include sheet glasses for windows, bottles, mirrors, optical instruments, chemical apparatus, electrical insulation and condensers, pipe, doors, crucibles, automobile and aircraft bodies, filters and building blocks. They are also used for making abbrassives and for gravel packing in the petroleum industries.

This report seeks to examine the financial viability or otherwise of mining glass sand in Nigeria.