Mr. Ahmed Maina, a Lecturer in the Department of Geology, Yobe State University says there are about 18 untapped mineral resources at commercial quantity across the stat\e.
Maina told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Damaturu that some of the minerals include limestone, gypsum, trona, kaolin, diatomite, bentonite, crude oil, among others.
He said Yobe, Borno, Adamawa, Bauchi, and Jigawa states were part of the Chad Basin blessed with abundant mineral resources.
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“Trona which is available in Fika Local Government is used to manufacture detergent. It is also used for producing Plaster of Paris (POP).
“In the same local government, we have limestone deposit with very huge reserve estimate.
“This means if Nigeria will develop cement factory in that local government, the factory will not only sustain Nigeria but it will sustain Africa at large,” Maina said.
Dr. Garba Iliya, another Geologist based in Damaturu, but the estimate of the reserve of gypsum at 141 million tonnes, saying the mineral was lying fallow in Gujba, Gulani, Fune, and Fika Local Government Areas.
He said 247 million tonnes of limestone and 231 tonnes of kaolin were available in Gujba, Gulani, Nangere and Fika local government areas.
Iliya said the reserve estimate of diatomite stood at 152.8 million tonnes in Gujba, Gulani, Damaturu, Fune, and Fika, while 88.3 million tonnes of Trona/Potash could be found in Geidam, Karasuwa, Yusufari, and Yunusari.
Iliya said that there was also 1.9 million tonnes of Silica Sand in Geidam, Nangere, and Fika local government areas.
When contacted, Alhaji Muhammed Lamin, Commissioner, Ministry of Land and Minerals Development of Yobe, confirmed the existence of the minerals in the state, saying the ministry was doing its best to attract investors to the mining sector.
He said the state was in talks with some Qatar investors with a view to establishing a cement factory in the state.
Lamin expressed concern over artisanal mining in the state, saying it was determined to attract foreign and local investors to the sector to boost its internally generated revenue.