Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, usually from an orebody, lode, vein, seam, reef or placer deposit. These deposits form a mineralized package that is of economic interest to the miner. History of mining in Nigeria Before the discovery of oil and the consequent decline in mining, Nigeria was a hub of mining activities, dating back to 1902 with the first mining of tin ore by the Royal Niger Company in 1905. Gold was mined subsequently in the present Kogi and Niger States in 1914 and coal in present day Enugu State in 1916. Mining contributed to the development of a functional railway industry helping to transport mined coal from Enugu to the seaport in Port Harcourt and to a power plant in Oji River. “With tin ore mining and processing came the establishment of the largest smelter in Africa (Makeri smelter in 1961) as well as a power plant in Jos. Finally, the establishment of industrial complexes and behemoth...
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