El-Tahdam Exploration Limited, a Nigerian lithium exploration company, has firmly denied allegations that it obtained its mining licences through fraudulent or deceptive means.
In a letter addressed to PREMIUM TIMES on April 30, the company’s legal consultant, Joyce Gani, dismissed the claims as entirely untrue and defamatory. The statement was in response to an earlier PREMIUM TIMES report which featured allegations by Abdullahi Usman, the secretary to the Village Head of Libata in Kebbi State, who claimed he had been tricked into signing a consent letter allowing the company access to local land for lithium exploration.
El-Tahdam maintained that no Nigerian regulatory agency, including the Mining Cadastre Office, has ever accused it of any form of misconduct. The letter stressed that the company’s licences were legally obtained and that the publication wrongly implied otherwise.
“Our client has never been accused or found guilty of any wrongdoing by any competent authority,” the letter read. “The suggestion that our licences were acquired through fraud or misrepresentation is completely baseless and defamatory.”
Kebbi State, located in Nigeria’s North-west, is known for its vast reserves of both metallic and non-metallic minerals, including lithium, gold, copper, lead, zinc, fluorite, and marble. As part of ongoing development efforts, the state government is establishing a lithium processing hub, with plans already underway to construct a modern processing facility.
However, the region continues to grapple with the impacts of illegal mining, which has been tied to growing insecurity and communal tensions. Authorities are working to impose stricter controls while promoting legitimate mining activities, including those by artisanal miners in areas such as Fakai, Bagudo, and Shanga.
El-Tahdam Exploration, headquartered in Abuja, has positioned itself as a key player in Nigeria’s energy transition. The company focuses on extracting lithium for global supply chains in the renewable energy sector. It also plans to establish lithium processing facilities in Kebbi, Kwara, and Kaduna states.
On March 20, 2025, El-Tahdam secured a $500 million investment from its partner, TSG Mining Group. The funding aims to accelerate the firm’s expansion across Nigeria, with Kebbi State earmarked as a strategic base for growth.
