DIMENSION STONES IN NIGERIAA HUGE AND UNTAPPED POTENTIAL

THE GLOBAL DIMENSION STONE INDUSTRY

• The Dimension Stone Industry is va lued a t ove r US$60 b i l l i on worldwide

• The major producers of raw natural stone are China, India, Italy, Iran, Turkey, Brazil, Egypt, Portugal, USA, Greece, France and South Africa

• The major consumers of finished products are China, USA, India, Italy, Spain, South Korea, Germany, France, Japan, Taiwan, Brazil, UK, Nigeria

• The major exporters of raw stone are India, Turkey, Spain, Brasil, China, Egypt, and South Africa

OVERVIEW OF THE NIGERIAN DIMENSION STONES SECTOR

• Nigeria is endowed with huge deposits of Dimension Stones which when exploited & processed can be used in construction projects as a decorative material for flooring, wall cladding, staircases, kitchen tops, etc;

• The current domestic demand for dimension stones is estimated at over 4,000,000 square meters valued at over US$50,000,000

• About 95% of this demand is currently met through imports mainly from China, India, Italy, Spain;

• Only about 5% is met through local production due to relatively low investment in quarrying and processing technology for dimension stones;

• Given adequate investment in the sector, Nigeria has the potential to become an exporter of dimension stones while focusing on import substitution

WHAT IS A DIMENSION STONE• Dimension Stone is a collective name used for

various natural stones that have been quarried and trimmed to specific sizes or shapes for s t ructura l or decorat ive purposes in construction or monumental applications.

• Examples of dimension stones are:

• GRANITE

• MARBLE

• LIMESTONE

• TRAVERTINE

• SLATE

• SANDSTONE

• ETC

DIMENSION STONE PRODUCT TYPES

- Blocks

- Slabs(« semifinished »)

- Tiles(« finished »)

- Cut-to-Size

FEW NOTABLE PROJECTS USING NIGERIAN DIMENSION STONES

NNAMDI AZIKWE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, ABUJACENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA HQ, ABUJAMINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS HQ, ABUJA

ECUMENICAL CENTRE, ABUJANNAMDI AZIKWE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, ABUJA

NIGERIA EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL, ABUJA

VARIOUS APPLICATION OF DIMENSION STONES

Dimension Stones are cut and polished for use as Floor Tiles, Staircases, Kitchen Tops, etc.

MAJOR DIMENSION STONES FOUND IN NIGERIA

• Granite is the predominant D imens ion S tone found in commercial quantities in Nigeria.

• Other dimension stones present inc lude marble, l imestone, quartzite, etc.

• Dimension stones are mainly found in Kaduna, Ondo, Bauchi, Cross River, Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Edo, Plateau, Kogi, Nassarawa, Kebbi, etc.

BUSINESS VALUE-CHAIN OF DIMENSION STONES

A TYPICAL DIMENSION STONE QUARRY

Unlike Quarrying for Crushed Aggregates, Dimension Stone Quarrying is a non-explosive method that involves a process of drilling & cutting using advanced quarrying equipment to extract rectangular blocks which are further processed into tiles, slabs or other cut-to-size products

A TYPICAL DIMENSION STONE PROCESSING PLANT

A Typical Dimension Stone Processing Plant comprises of block loading facility, block cutting machine, calibration machines, grinding & polishing machines, profiling

machine, water treatment plant, etc.

OPPORTUNITIES IN THE NIGERIAN DIMENSION STONE INDUSTRY

• Presence of exotic and high quality stones across the country

• Huge Employment Opportunities (Direct & Indirect)

• Import Substitution with Foreign Exchange Savings

• Foreign Exchange Earning Potential through export of at least 25% of local production

• Diversification of the Nigerian Economy

• Economic Growth and Contribution to GDP

CHALLENGES IN THE NIGERIAN DIMENSION STONE INDUSTRY

• Huge dumping of sub-standard dimension stones mainly from China

• Limited access to long-term financing

• High Interest Rates

• Multiple Taxation Issues

• Poor Infrastructure (access roads, electricity, water)

• Inadequate Capacity Development Programs on Dimension Stones Operations

WAY FORWARD FOR THE NIGERIAN DIMENSION STONE INDUSTRY

• Establishment of an Intervention Fund that provides long-term financing at single digit interest rate with favourable conditions for acquisition of equipment, working capital and infrastructure (access roads to quarry sites)

• Establishment of a Levy on Imported Dimension Stones with a thickness below 15mm to discourage dumping of substandard products

• Enforcement of Local Patronage Bill compelling all MDAs to patronise Nigerian Dimension Stones for their building projects

• Duty-Free Export of Dimension Stones

• Local & International promotion of Nigerian Dimension Stones to increase awareness

• Establishment of a Dimension Stones Centre for human capacity development on dimension stone quarrying, processing, marketing and management.

APPENDIX

DIMENSION STONE COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

• Processing Plants

1. Cibi Nigeria Limited, Kaduna

2. Sutol-Crushed Rock Nigeria Limited, Ondo

3. Asada Marble & Granite, Abuja

4. Stone World Mining Limited, Ondo

5. Stone Craft FZE, Calabar

6. Onshore Frontiers Limited, Lokoja

7. Fujian Stones Limited (JV), Keffi

8. Sahel Services Limited, Bauchi

9. Rich Quarries Limited, Kaduna

10. Winners Marble, Lagos

11. Precious Mines Limited, Kwara

12. Bil Marble & Granite Limited, Katsina

13. Magma Minerals Limited, Kano

Nigeria currently has about 13 small to

medium-scale Processing Plants

installed with cutting & polishing machines.

DIMENSION STONE COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

• Dimension Stone Quarries

1. Cibi Nigeria Limited, Kaduna

2. Al-Awael Nigeria Limited, Kaduna

3. Sitman Nigeria Limited, Kaduna

4. Tutu Ventures, Kaduna

5. Stone Craft FZE, Kaduna

6. Five Skyms Limited, Bauchi

7. Mining & Granite Limited, Bauchi

8. Rich Quarries Limited, Bauchi

9. Stone World Mining Limited, Ondo

10. Onshore Frontiers Limited, Lokoja

11. Fujian Stones Limited (JV), Keffi

12. Rich Quarries Limited, Bauchi

13. Magma Minerals Limited, Kano

14. Bil Marble & Granite Limited, Katsina

15. Precious Mines Quarry, Kwara

Nigeria currently has about 15 Dimension

Stone Quarries producing rectangular

blocks for the processing plants