Ganfeng Lithium Industry, a leading Chinese firm has expressed its intention to train 100 Nasarawa indigenes on lithium refining processes at its Shagamu plant in Ogun State.
The gesture followed the visit of Governor Abdullahi Sule to the company’s Shagamu lithium refining plant recently.
LEADERSHIP reports that the federal government in October 2023 performed a groundbreaking for the establishment of about $250m lithium battery factory owned by Ganfeng in Endo community, Nasarawa local government area of Nasarawa State.
A statement by the chief press secretary to the governor, Mr. Ibrahim Addra said his principal had extracted a promise from officials of the lithium processing giant to train the indigenes with technical background to enable them work in the industry back home.
Mr. Addra said the purpose of the visit to the plant was aimed at tracking the lithium mined from Nasarawa State to ensure value addition in conformity with the state’s mining policy.
“One of the promises I extracted from them is that they will bring 100 people from Nasarawa State to be able to learn here so that when they return to Nasarawa they will be able to work in the factory,” Governor Sule was quoted to have said.
Mr. Addra stressed that the state government’s policy on mining stipulated that mining companies must set up processing plants in the state in order to add value instead of the previous practice where the lithium is carted away in its raw form.
According to him, officials of Ganfeng also assured Governor Sule that work on the refinery in Endo, Nasarawa State is progressing steadily with completion deadline of June this year.
He noted that the lithium refining plant under construction in Endo, Nasarawa State has three times the capacity of the plant in Shagamu, Ogun State.
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