Nigerian defence-tech company Terra Industries has secured a $1 million contract from Anka Metals to provide security for the Jema’a Resource Project, a multi-metallic mining development in Kaduna State.

The agreement will see Terra deploy autonomous surveillance and site-protection systems across the mining site, using drones, unmanned ground vehicles and fixed surveillance infrastructure connected through its proprietary ArtemisOS command-and-control platform.

The Jema’a project, located around Gidan Waya in Jema’a, contains deposits of gold, lithium, copper and nickel, placing it among the growing number of mineral-development projects that require security infrastructure as Nigeria seeks to attract more investment into its solid minerals sector.

For Terra, the contract represents more than another security deployment.

It marks an expansion of its defence technology business into commercial critical infrastructure, where autonomous systems can be used to monitor large and potentially difficult-to-access sites.

Terra's Autonomous Security System

The deployment will combine several components of Terra's technology stack.

Its Iroko unmanned aerial vehicle will provide aerial surveillance, while the company's Duma unmanned ground vehicle will support ground-level monitoring.

Fixed sentry towers will add another layer of surveillance around the site.

All three elements will be connected through ArtemisOS, which acts as the central command-and-control system.

Rather than operating each piece of equipment independently, security personnel can use the platform to bring information from different sensors and systems into one operational environment.

That allows human security teams to monitor activity across the site and respond to potential threats.

The model is designed around a combination of autonomous systems and human oversight.

The machines provide persistent surveillance and information gathering, while people remain responsible for decisions and responses.

Why Mining Sites Need Different Security Models

Mining projects present a distinctive security challenge.

Unlike an office building or urban commercial facility, a mine can occupy a large area and may be located far from major population centres.

There can be multiple access points, equipment yards, processing areas, roads and surrounding territory that need to be monitored.

Maintaining enough conventional security personnel to patrol every part of such an environment can be expensive and difficult.

Autonomous surveillance offers another approach.

Aerial systems can cover large areas from above, ground vehicles can inspect locations that require closer observation, while fixed towers can provide continuous monitoring of designated areas.

The objective is not necessarily to eliminate human security personnel.

Instead, technology can give smaller teams greater visibility over a much larger area.

Jema'a's Mineral Resources Add Strategic Importance

The security contract comes as the Jema'a project moves within a broader effort to develop Kaduna's mineral resources.

The site contains gold, lithium, copper and nickel, commodities with applications across several industries.

Lithium has become particularly important because of its role in battery supply chains, while copper is essential to electrical infrastructure, power systems and industrial equipment.

Gold remains a major commodity for jewellery and financial applications, while nickel is used in stainless steel and several industrial and battery applications.

That combination makes mineral-development projects economically significant while increasing the value of the physical assets that need protection.

For operators, security therefore becomes part of the infrastructure required to bring a project from development into production.

A Larger Kaduna Mining Investment Push

The Terra contract is also taking place against a wider push to develop mining activity in Kaduna State.

The Jema'a project and the Kaduna Mining Development Company previously entered into a $500 million financing and development framework with the Africa Finance Corporation, covering mining assets in the state.

The development of these projects creates a larger ecosystem around mineral extraction, including roads, processing facilities, equipment, energy infrastructure, logistics and security.

The more capital invested into a mining project, the greater the potential cost of disruption.

That makes security technology increasingly relevant to investors and operators trying to protect both physical assets and production timelines.

Terra Is Turning Defence Technology Into Commercial Infrastructure

The Anka Metals contract also demonstrates Terra's attempt to expand the market for its technology.

The company was founded in 2024 by Nathan Nwachuku and Maxwell Maduka, with a focus on building autonomous defence capabilities for Africa and other emerging markets.

Its technology portfolio includes drones, autonomous sentry systems, unmanned ground vehicles and maritime surveillance technology.

But those capabilities do not have to be restricted to military applications.

A power plant, mining operation, oil facility or other critical asset can face many of the same surveillance challenges that defence organisations encounter: large areas to monitor, limited visibility and the need to identify potential threats quickly.

That creates a commercial market for technology originally developed for defence applications.

Mining Could Become a Major Market for Autonomous Security

Mining is particularly suited to this model because operations can span significant areas and require monitoring around the clock.

A drone can survey areas that would take human teams considerably longer to inspect.

An unmanned ground vehicle can operate in locations where continuous human patrols may be inefficient.

Fixed surveillance towers can maintain persistent observation of important access points.

When those systems are connected through software, security operators can potentially build a much broader picture of what is happening across a site.

The value is therefore not only in individual machines.

It is in the network created by connecting them.

The Contract Is Part of a Broader Commercial Push

The Anka Metals agreement follows approximately $2 million in security contracts with two undisclosed lithium mining operators, according to Terra.

Those contracts were announced after the company launched its commercial division in August.

That sequence suggests mining is emerging as an early target market for Terra's commercial-security business.

The logic is straightforward.

The same autonomous technologies developed for defence can be adapted for companies operating expensive physical assets in remote environments.

Mining companies are therefore potentially becoming customers for defence technology without necessarily needing the full military system.

Terra Has Raised Significant Capital

Terra's commercial expansion follows a major financing round.

The company raised a $52 million seed round in August, with investors including 8VC, Lux Capital, Silent Ventures and SV Angel.

It also appointed former SpaceX executive Ben MacWilliams as Vice President of Strategy and opened its first office outside Africa in London.

Terra has said its technology has already been deployed to protect power plants, mines and other critical assets valued at approximately $11 billion across several African countries.

The company has also set an ambitious commercial target of securing more than $100 million in contracts by the end of 2026.

The Anka Metals deal therefore contributes to a broader effort to turn Terra's technology platform into a commercial business rather than relying exclusively on defence customers.

The Bigger Opportunity Is Critical Infrastructure

Africa's infrastructure build-out is creating a potentially large market for autonomous monitoring systems.

Energy facilities, telecommunications infrastructure, mines, industrial sites and transportation networks all require security.

Many of these assets operate in locations where maintaining large numbers of personnel can be expensive or difficult.

Autonomous systems can potentially extend the reach of existing security teams.

That creates an opportunity for African defence-tech companies to sell technology into industries that traditionally relied on conventional security providers.

The challenge will be proving that these systems can operate reliably in harsh environments and that the cost of deployment makes commercial sense.

Human Security Is Still Part of the Equation

It is also important not to interpret autonomous security as completely autonomous decision-making.

Terra's systems can provide surveillance, detection and information, but security operations still require human oversight, rules of engagement and appropriate response procedures.

The real advantage is the ability to give human operators more information and wider coverage.

That distinction will become increasingly important as autonomous technology moves from defence into commercial environments.

Mining companies will ultimately need to balance automation with safety, regulatory requirements and accountability.

Terra's $1 million Anka Metals contract is interesting because it shows where African defence technology could find its next commercial market: the infrastructure that needs protecting.

The same drones, autonomous ground vehicles and command systems developed for military applications can also monitor mines, power plants and other critical assets.

For Terra, that creates a much larger addressable market than defence alone.

But the real test will not be whether autonomous systems can fly, drive or detect movement.

It will be whether they can reliably reduce security risk and operating costs in the difficult environments where African infrastructure is being built.

If Terra can prove that at Jema'a and its other mining deployments, autonomous security could become an important layer of Africa's expanding resource and infrastructure economy.