The Mineral Trader's Contract Handbook: Offers, Contracts, Incoterms and Payment Terms Explained.
The Mineral Trader’s Contract Handbook: Offers, Contracts, Incoterms and Payment Terms Explained
📘 150 pages · A5 PDF · Instant download
✍️ By Kolawole King, CEO of Augustina Impex Limited, Jos, Nigeria, in the mineral trade since 2001
In the mineral trade, two exporters can ship the same cargo and receive very different money. The difference is the contract.
Most mineral deals don’t fail because the mineral is bad. They fail because of paper:
- an offer that bound the seller by accident
- a contract with no moisture or umpire clause
- an Incoterm that left the cargo uninsured on the road to Lagos
- a payment term that let one side walk away with everything
This handbook gives you the practical contract knowledge that experienced traders usually learn by losing money. It’s written in plain English, with real mineral examples, model clauses and worked calculations.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
✅ Offers and pre-contract documents. What FCO, SCO, LOI, ICPO, RWA, POF, proforma invoices, NCNDA and IMFPA really mean, which ones protect you and which are red flags. You’ll also learn exactly when an offer becomes binding.
✅ The mineral sales contract, clause by clause. Parties, specifications with guaranteed and rejection limits, penalties and bonuses, quantity and tolerance, and price formulas linked to LME, LBMA and other benchmarks. It also covers:
- pricing periods (QPs)
- provisional and final invoices
- moisture, sampling and umpire laboratories
- title, risk, insurance and export documents
- force majeure, remedies, arbitration and compliance clauses
✅ Incoterms® 2020 for mineral cargo. All 11 rules explained from a mineral shipper’s point of view, plus:
- why “FOB Jos” is wrong
- the container risk gap under FOB, CFR and CIF
- a full cost build-up from Jos to Shanghai
- how to choose the right rule
✅ Payment terms. Telegraphic transfers, advances, documentary collections (D/P and D/A), letters of credit under UCP 600, a field-by-field MT700 check and how to avoid LC discrepancies. It also covers standby LCs, guarantees, escrow, and how to spot fake “MT760”, “blocked funds” and “leased SBLC” schemes.
✅ Five fully worked deals. Tin concentrate CIF with an LC, tantalite FOB with an advance, lithium CFR with grade-adjusted pricing, monazite under radioactive-material rules, and gold doré sold to a refinery with payment after assay.
✅ Nigerian export specifics. Export permits, royalties, NEPC registration, Form NXP, domiciliary accounts and NNRA clearance.
READY-TO-USE TOOLS INSIDE
📄 A complete model Sales and Purchase Agreement with sample schedules
📄 A clause bank of alternative wordings
📄 Genuine enquiry, offer and LOI templates
📄 An Incoterms® 2020 quick-reference table
📄 An LC checklist and a 30-point pre-signing checklist
📄 20 contract traps and how to avoid them
📄 10 practice exercises with answers, FAQs and a glossary
WHO THIS BOOK IS FOR
👉 Nigerian and African mineral exporters who want to sell on fair, secure terms
👉 International buyers sourcing minerals from Africa
👉 Traders, brokers and agents
👉 Trade finance, compliance and procurement teams
👉 Anyone starting a mineral export business
WHY BUY IT
✔️ Avoid the clauses and payment structures that cost traders the most money
✔️ Negotiate with confidence against large buyers and their standard contracts
✔️ Get paid faster with LC documents that pass first time
✔️ Protect yourself from fake offers, fake instruments and advance-fee schemes
✔️ Save on legal costs by arriving with a well-structured draft contract
One avoided mistake on a single shipment is worth far more than the price of this book.
⚠️ This is an educational guide, not legal advice. Have major contracts reviewed by a qualified lawyer.
📚 Also available in the Augustina Impex Mining eBooks Library: https://selar.com/m/augustinaimpex
Kolawole King
Chief Executive Officer, Augustina Impex Limited
#288 Diye Ward, Zarmaganda, Jos South, Plateau State, Nigeria
📧 [email protected] | WhatsApp: +234 906 090 4274
🌐 https://augustinaimpex.com | Blog: https://augustinaimpexng.blogspot.com/