The Federal Government has revoked 1,263 mineral licences for failure to meet annual service fee obligations.
According to the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, the revoked licences include:
-
584 exploration licences
-
65 mining leases
-
144 quarry licences
-
470 small-scale mining leases
The decision, approved by Minister Dele Alake, followed a recommendation from the Mining Cadastral Office (MCO). The revoked licences will be deleted from the Electronic Mining Cadastral System portal.
Alake stressed that the revocation aims to discourage speculators and open up space for genuine investors:
“The era of obtaining licences and keeping them in drawers for the highest bidder is over. The annual service fee is the minimum evidence that you are interested in mining.”
He added that the outstanding service debts are still owed and directed that the list of defaulters be forwarded to the EFCC for recovery.
MCO DG Simon Nkom disclosed that out of 1,957 initial defaulters listed in a gazette on June 19, 2025, only those who failed to reconcile payments or comply were finally revoked.
This move brings total mineral titles revoked under the Tinubu administration to 3,794, including 619 revoked for fee default and 912 for dormancy last year.
The ministry said the revocations are part of ongoing reforms to sanitise Nigeria’s mining sector and boost investor confidence.