FG reveals barite processing facility, announces import ban

Through the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, the Federal Government has opened a barite processing facility in Cross River State in an effort to restrict barite imports and encourage domestic production.

The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite, mentioned the importance of the barite processing plant’s location in Ugaga, Cross State, when he spoke at the plant’s opening.

He began by saying, “I am pleased to address you on this August event, which marks the commissioning of the Barite Processing Plant in Ugaga, Cross River State, South-South, Nigeria.

“The choice of Ugaga, as a location for the barite processing plant, is predicated on its possession of rich deposits of barite among the South-South State and its proximity to Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where the processed barites are required for oil exploration in line with local content and value addition policy in Nigeria.”

He claims that because the barite processing facility is situated in Ugaga, small-scale and artisanal barite miners within the region can easily gain access to the facility for their barite processing before further transportation and sales.

Dr. Oluwatoyin Akinlade, the ministry’s permanent secretary, mentioned in her remarks that the facility would process barite in accordance with the international API standard, making it suitable for export to other regions of the world in order to generate foreign exchange.

The made-in-Nigeria barite was introduced by the Federal Government in October 2021 with the claim that it would allow the nation to avoid paying foreign exchange to import the product.

In oil and gas drilling, barite is used as a weighting material primarily to stop the explosive release of gas and oil during drilling.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Simbi Wabote, made the announcement during the launch in 2021. He stated that starting in 2022, the Nigerian oil and gas industry would not be able to use imported barites.

The barite processing plant’s commissioning was an effort to promote barite made in Nigeria even though the ban has not yet been put into effect.

Investors may start competing for Nigeria’s over 20 million metric tons of barite reserves, according to a report from The PUNCH last year.

According to rumors, the Federal Government was collaborating with TotalEnergies to make investments in the country’s barite reserves.

Additionally, professional organizations like the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists and universities with petroleum engineering programs in Nigerian states with barite reserves were said to be involved in the project.