By Mustapha Yauri
A policy think tank has proposed transforming Nigeria’s dormant coal value chain into a high-technology feedstock base for critical Artificial Intelligence (AI) materials such as silicon and germanium to unlock billions of dollars in potential revenue.
The proposal, submitted to Bola Tinubu, says the initiative could position Nigeria within the rapidly expanding global AI hardware and semiconductor manufacturing market.
According to the Galadiman Ruwa Centre for Strategic Leadership and Communication (GCSLC), coal is emerging as a strategic resource capable of supporting Nigeria’s competitiveness in AI-driven industries, including semiconductors, transistors and memory resistors.
Chairman of the centre, Jaafaru Sa’ad, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Zaria that the blueprint outlines pathways for revitalising dormant coal assets for advanced industrial applications.
Sa’ad said Nigeria must shift from passive dependence on raw resource exports to deliberate revitalisation of abandoned national assets to secure a place in the AI-driven global economy.
He advocated the establishment of a proposed Nigerian Green Energy and Chemicals Corporation (NGECC) as a special-purpose vehicle to drive the conversion of coal resources into high-value industrial materials.
The proposal is anchored on the centre’s “8R Stealth Paradigm,” which focuses on revitalisation, resuscitation and re-engineering of strategic resources, especially Nigeria’s estimated 3.3 billion metric tonnes of coal reserves.
Sa’ad explained that the framework recommends transforming coal into advanced industrial inputs capable of supporting global semiconductor supply chains and AI hardware manufacturing ecosystems.
The blueprint further proposed the creation of a Presidential-led Special Standing Committee to facilitate a Strategic Mission Vehicle that would operationalise the NGECC as a globally competitive corporation.
In addition, GCSLC suggested activating a National Resource Revitalisation Fusion Centre to serve as an operational hub linking Nigeria’s mineral resources with global technology standards and innovation systems.
The think tank noted that the initiative aligns with international economic outlooks, including projections by the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations“Beyond GDP” framework, which emphasises long-term sovereign wealth creation and industrial resilience.
It cautioned, however, that emerging economies such as South Africa and Namibia are advancing rapidly in AI adoption and digital infrastructure, while Nigeria risks remaining largely a consumer rather than a producer of advanced technologies.
The group warned that without strategic interventions such as the proposed NGECC, the country could face constraints in computing capacity, data resilience, national security capabilities and public sector productivity.
NAN reports that GCSLC describes itself as a global think tank dedicated to revitalising national assets through its “8R Stealth Paradigm” to drive sustainable industrial transformation. (NAN)
Edited by Bashir Rabe Mani
