Two major Chinese lithium manufacturers have taken control of a Nigerian company that previously raised eyebrows for its strikingly similar name to a leading Chinese lithium producer. The acquisition, involving Canmax Technologies Co. Ltd. and Jiangxi Jiuling Lithium Co. Ltd., gives them a controlling stake in Ganfeng Lithium Industry Ltd., which is developing a refinery in northern Nigeria.
The Nigerian firm, established by Chinese investors in 2022, caused confusion in 2023 when it began building a $250 million lithium processing plant. The company later clarified that it had no official connection to Ganfeng Lithium Group Co. Ltd., one of the world’s biggest lithium chemical suppliers, though it did not explain the similarity in names.
Corporate records indicate that Canmax and Jiuling finalised their takeover in mid-2024, bringing financial strength and industry expertise to Nigeria’s emerging lithium sector. Until now, most of the country’s lithium ore has been exported to China for processing.
This move shows China’s continued push to secure lithium supplies in anticipation of rising global demand for electric vehicle batteries. Chinese firms have been aggressively investing in African lithium deposits, from Mali to Zimbabwe, even as prices have plunged nearly 90% from their 2022 peak.
Canmax, a major lithium chemicals producer listed in Shenzhen, has also committed over $200 million to developing two additional lithium mining sites in northern Nigeria in partnership with local firm Three Crown Mines Ltd. The company’s founder, Pei Zhenhua, is a key investor in Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL), the world’s leading EV battery maker. Meanwhile, Jiuling, based in China’s lithium-rich Jiangxi province, supplies chemicals to CATL.
Nigeria holds vast reserves of valuable minerals, including gold, tin, and lithium, though much of the extraction is done informally by small-scale miners. The Nigerian Ganfeng secured a 10-year mining agreement in September under permits issued by the Nasarawa state government, where the refinery is under construction.
The first phase of the plant is expected to be completed by mid-2025, with the second phase following four months later, according to Ibrahim Abdullahi, CEO of the Nasarawa State Development and Investment Agency. “Nasarawa state is pleased with this investment and welcomes more of it,” he said.
Canmax and Jiuling, which now own 75% of Nigerian Ganfeng, declined to comment on the acquisition. Nigeria’s federal mines ministry also did not respond to questions regarding the deal or the refinery’s expected lithium production capacity.
