$700bn Nigeria Critical Minerals Deal Will Deepen Economic Ties — U.S.

The United States says its new $700 billion Critical Minerals Framework with Nigeria will deepen economic relations between the two countries while unlocking investment opportunities in Nigeria's vast mineral resources.

The U.S. Department of State said the agreement would expand opportunities for American companies to access Nigeria's critical minerals while strengthening U.S. supply chains. "The U.S. and Nigeria strengthened our economic partnership through a new Critical Minerals Framework," the department said, adding that it would "expand opportunities for American companies to access Nigeria's critical mineral resources and strengthen U.S. supply chains."

The development follows the signing of the agreement on Sept. 23 at Nigeria's House in New York, on the sidelines of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly. Nigeria's Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, signed on behalf of Nigeria, while U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau signed for Washington.

The framework covers cooperation in geological data, mineral exploration, development and processing, infrastructure and technical capacity building. It is designed to leverage government-to-government relations to encourage business-to-business transactions and attract American investment across Nigeria's mineral value chain.

Nigeria estimates its mineral resources to be worth about $700 billion and is seeking greater investment to diversify its economy beyond petroleum. The U.S. said the framework would "advance responsible development of Nigeria's resources that support economic growth" for both countries.
At the signing, Alake described the framework as an agreement capable of shaping the future of economic relations between the two nations. "Some agreements manage the present, and some agreements shape the future. The framework we sign today belongs to the second kind," he said.

He stressed, however, that Nigeria's priority was not simply to extract and export its mineral wealth in raw form. "Our goal is to turn potential into lasting value at home through stronger local processing, new skills, quality jobs and new opportunities for Nigerian businesses," he said, noting that cooperation under the framework would span exploration, mineral development and processing, infrastructure and technical capacity building.

Alake said the partnership would support President Bola Tinubu's economic diversification agenda and promote industrialisation through increased domestic value addition. Nigeria holds deposits of lithium and other minerals increasingly in demand for batteries, renewable-energy systems, advanced manufacturing and emerging technologies.

He described the signing as only the beginning, stressing that implementation would determine the actual benefits both countries derive from the deal. "Now comes the harder and more important work: moving from agreement to implementation. A signature is a promise, results are the proof," he said.

Landau, for his part, described Nigeria as a strategic U.S. partner and an important regional power given its population and economic significance. He said the framework would create opportunities for greater prosperity in both countries and reaffirmed Washington's commitment to Nigeria's economic growth.

The announcement places the Nigeria agreement within Washington's broader push to strengthen critical-mineral supply chains and expand American private-sector investment across Africa. The U.S. and the African Union have also advanced infrastructure projects through their Strategic Infrastructure and Investment Working Group, which Washington said was "creating new opportunities for U.S. private-sector investment across Africa." The mechanism seeks to connect American capital and expertise with African infrastructure priorities, including transport, trade, energy, digital development and critical-mineral supply chains.