Ajaokuta

Abuja, Feb. 3, 2024: The Minister of Steel Development, Prince Shuaib Audu,  has said that a three-year roadmap has been developed to resuscitate the moribund Ajaokuta Steel Mill located in Kogi.

Audu, while speaking at a media parley on Friday in Abuja, said the plan was part of efforts by the President Bola Tinubu’s administration to revamp the steel industry and shore up the process of industrialisation in Nigeria.

He said that data on technical analysis and evaluation by experts indicated that the government requires between $2 billion to $5billion US dollars to revive the Ajaokuta steel company.

He said that the ministry had prepared an internal roadmap, which they intend to commission consultants that would bring in global perspective to it.

“We want to launch the three-year roadmap in the next three months,” Audu said.

According to the minister, part of the plan is to concession the company to people that have the core competence to get the job done.

He said that  critical stakeholders would be consulted to ensure that the awardees possess the requisite competency.

“We are looking at where different aspects can be handled by different people with different core competencies,” he said.

Audu explained that the roadmap would involve reviving the 44 different production units of the steel company in piece meal through its concession to investors.

He said that the Light Steel Mill (LSM) section would be revived for the production of iron rods.

“What we plan to do is to start the Light Steel Mill or the LSM section, which will cost us about N35 billion to be able to produce 50,000 metric pounds of iron rods,”he said.

According to the minister, discussions are ongoing with the ministers in charge of Defence and Interior in collaboration with Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) to revive its engineering workshop to produce military hardware for the military

He said that the ministry was also negotiating with foreign investors for the establishment of a new steel plant, noting that steel was in great demand in Nigeria, the highest population of more than 220 million in Africa.

Audu said that an Indian company, Jindal Steel had made a commitment to President Tinubu in Sept. 2023 on the side lines of the G20 Summit in Delhi, India, to invest $5million US dollars in establishing a steel plant in Nigeria.

He added that talks were also ongoing  with a Chinese company, Luan Steel holding in the same regard.

The minister said that the revamping  of the Ajaokuta Steel company and investment by the foreign companies were projected to bring in an excess of $10 billion US dollars into Nigeria’s economy as well as create 500,000 direct and indirect jobs for Nigerians.

He said that 90 per cent of steel in the country was being imported and President Tinubu’s administration was determined to reverse the trend, which could be achieved with the passing of the Nigerian Metallurgical Industrial Bill as well as the National Steel Council Act.

The minister said that the administration would provide an enabling environment for local steel industries to grow.

He pointed out that president Tinubu was fully in support and committed to the growth of the steel sector being the bedrock for industrialisation.

Abuja, Nov. 23, 2023: The Minister of Works, Mr David Umahi, says that the Federation Government is planning to deploy the steel from the Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited in Kogi State to building and construction of roads.

Umahi said unveil the plan after an inter-ministerial meeting with the Minister of Steel Development , Mr Shuaibu Audu in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu in Abuja

Mr Uchenna Orji, Chief Press Secretary to the Minister of Works made this known in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.

According to him the two ministers have resolved to synergize and strategize in tapping into the opportunities in Ajaokuta Steel Plant for the development of road infrastructure in Nigeria.

He said the far reaching resolutions of the ministers underscored the imperative of coordination, cooperation coherence, and complementarity in the execution of Federal Government’s action plans for national development.

He said the minister of works in his remarks after the meeting said the Ministry of Steel Development would play a major role in the road infrastructure revolution plan envisioned by Mr President by providing more than 16 per cent of the materials needed for the construction of Nigeria’s roads in concrete pavement.

Umahi said that tapping into the opportunities in Steel Industry would not only creat jobs and wealth for Nigeria’s population, it would also create a global market and encourage industrialization.

“We are going into concrete road, in this concrete road, about 16 percent of it is from Steel while 30 percent is cement .

“If we start waiting for FG it might become difficult. We did Return On Investment (ROI) , the profit we could have made, part of it will go to bank interest ,we are looking at commercial bank but Federal Executive Council has to endorse it.

Umahi also commended Audu for his efforts in developing the steel sector, noting that steel industry is the bedrock of Nigeria’s industrialization and the backbone that stimulates national development and economic boost for the industrial growth of any nation.

He assured the Hon. Minister of Steel Development that his Ministry would work collaboratively in his efforts of enhancing the potentialities of Ajaokuta Steel Plant- the largest Steel Mill in Nigeria.

“One of the renewed hope agenda of Mr President is to think outside the box , Mr President inherited a large shunk of debt from the past administration.

” The beauty about it is that he is not complaining , he knew how the country was before he took the job and how it is. The good thing is that if you have passion for something God will give you an idea ,”

Earlier, the Minister of Steel Development, Mr Shuaib Audu said the meeting was how to restart Steel production at Ajaokuta Steel Plant .

“The Hon Minister of Works has made it very clear that the Federal Government is looking to develop over 30,000 kilometers of road .

“And a large component of that will be from Steel wrought , and percentage of that Steel wrought will be produced in Ajaokuta. We came to have a discussion on how to implement the process for producing it in Ajaokuta within the shortest possible time”

Audu emphasised the importance of the initiative by both ministries and optimistic that it would provide the needed economic boost for the nation, generate revenue and provide thousands of direct jobs for skilled and non- skilled technicians and hundreds of thousands of unskilled jobs in Nigeria.

“And we are to achieve two or three things , one to create job opportunity for Nigerians as a whole, two, to ensure that the corridor around the North Central Zone and around the Ajaokuta Warri axis is busy with activities.

“Thirdly, the plant has been inactive for close to four decades and we are here to restart the plant within the shortest possible time,” he said.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared on Sunday that with the hitherto abandoned Ajaokuta Steel Complex now nearing completion, the project will have the capacity to employ 500,000 Nigerians once designated as a free trade zone.

The President further promised to fully harness the potentials of the Complex once it is completed, as it would boost Nigeria’s foreign direct investment and provide avenue for the creation of the much-needed conducive business environment for all sectors to thrive.

Vice President Kashim Shettima, who represented the President, made this known at the flag-off of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship campaign in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital.

The governorship poll in the state is slated for November 11.

Shettima also noted that Tinubu remained committed to completing the constructions of the River Niger, the Kabba-Lokoja and the Abuja-Lokoja roads.

President Tinubu, VP  Shettima stated, is a man of plenty ideas who is determined to reposition the nation in its rightful place, especially as it borders on restructuring and stimulating the Nigerian economy.

“Given Mr President’s commitment to the development of Kogi State and indeed the entirety of Nigeria, Kogi in particular being a confluence state, cannot afford to have a governor who is hostile to the center. We must be partners in progress and work hand in hand to develop this great nation,” the Vice President said.

He further hinted about plans by the Tinubu administration to make the Itakpe crop processing project a dream come true, just as he promised jobs and affordable education under the present government.

Reemphasising that the welfare of the citizenry would never be wilfully compromised, VP Shettima called on Kogi citizens to come out en masse on November 11 to vote for the candidate of the APC, Ahmed Usman Ododo, in order to consolidate on the achievements of the APC government in the state.

 He added that the natural endowments of Kogi State would be harnessed for the development of the state and the nation at large, adding that President Tinubu had further given his nod for the rehabilitation of Obajana-Okene road in Kogi State.

The Action for Actualisation of Iron and Steel Projects in Nigeria (AAISPN) and the ETENYIMA Foundation (TEF) have urged President Bola Tinubu to complete and inaugurate the Ajaokuta Steel Plant.

The Chairman of AAISPN, Dr. Kabir Abarkaka, made the call at a news conference on Sunday in Abuja.

He said both organisations spoke for the coalition of concerned citizens who at the onset, had high expectations for the steel plant.

Abarkaka said that citizens were pained that the 65 years old Ajaokuta Steel Plant was still in the test-tube and wanted Tinubu to keep his campaign promises on the project.

He said that 90 per cent of the skilled staff trained by the Federal Government were already out of service in retirement.

“We are calling on the new administration to take the plant out of the woods,” he said.

The chairman said that a fully functional steel sector was a one-off panacea to Nigeria’s fuel subsidy debacle and a formidable tool for economic diversification.

He explained that the plant was designed to deliver a three-phased geometric production of 1.3 million tonnes of steel products in the first phase.

According to him, it will deliver up to 5.2 million tonnes in the third and final phase; the first phase stopped after reaching 98 per cent completion and so it is technically ready.

“What remains is just igniting of the blast furnace, to keep the mills running and when it starts, it can run for over 20 years uninterrupted.

“A fully operational integrated Ajaokuta Steel Complex is expected to complement steel production in the Delta Steel Plant in Aladja, Delta State, the Osogbo Rolling Mill in Osun, the Katsina Rolling Mill in Katsina and the Jos Rolling Mill in Plateau for manufacture of iron, steel and allied products.

“The plant is capable of providing direct and indirect job opportunities for more than 500,000 Nigerian youths; regrettably, the giant bedrock of Nigeria’s industrialisation, is yet to find its feet,” he said.

Abarkaka said that iron and steel products wet among the leading consumers of Nigeria’s foreign exchange.

According to him, in the last nine months in 2022, Nigerians spent one trillion naira on iron and steel imports.

He said that the estimated annual per capita consumption of iron and steel in Nigeria rose from 5kg in 1968 to 150kg in 2020

“A fully operational upstream steel sector has the capacity to open up a floodgate of business opportunities that will support national index of the military and security power, improve foreign exchange earner, constitute a tool that is critical for job creation and industrial growth.

“A functional Ajaokuta Steel Plant is a vibrant tool for economic diversification and a stimulant for the Nigerian industrial revolution plan that can snowball the nation into rapid industrialiation.

“This will enhance national power and promote employment generation that will galvanise the nation into national prosperity,” he said.

Abarkaka said with earnings from steel production, Luxembourgers enjoyed the world’s highest per capita gross domestic product.

He said a worker in Luxembourg enjoyed an average gross salary of 7,000 to 8,000 dollars  a month which is about N6 million.

He said Luxembourg youth unemployment rate which was 16.4 per cent during the fourth quarter of 2019, had improved to 6.8 per cent in 2020, saying that as of February, the youth unemployment rate in Luxembourg again leapt to 4.8 per cent.

Dr Tom Ohikere, a member of AAISPN, said that the steel sector, if fully developed, was a viable option to the oil sector.

He said that to achieve Tinubu’s plan to generate job, Ajaokuta steel plant was where to invest.

Ohikere said that if Kaduna State could build a steel plant from scratch to finish in the last five years, Nigeria could complete and inaugurate Ajaokuta steel plant which is at 98 per cent completion with the right political will.

President Muhammadu Buhari, in the course of the week, said the Ajaokuta Steel Complex would provide 500,000 estimated jobs for Nigerian youths.

The president revealed this during his one-day state visit to Kogi on Thursday.

He also spoke of the determination of his administration to position Kogi as an industrial hub as well as a solid mineral power base..

He explained how the Federal Government achieved the resolution of all legal entanglements that had bogged down the progress of the Ajaokuta Steel Complex.

According to him, the project stands to benefit the people of the state immensely.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday, revealed that $400 million has been spent by his administration to “transform” the Ajaokuta Steel Complex in Kogi State.

He said the investment made in the steel company will add $1.6 billion annual income to the Nigerian economy and create over 500,000 estimated jobs.

“I am glad to report that as we begin to round off in office, we can genuinely say that our administration has rescued Ajaokuta from all legal disabilities,” Buhari said in Okene in Kogi during a one-day state visit.

“It is now ready for concessioning to a private investor with the right profiles to put it to work for Nigeria in general and Kogi State in particular.”

According to the President, no other single project holds the key to unlocking the potential of the state as much as the Ajaokuta Steel Complex which his administration inherited as a long moribund complex “strangulating under a tangle of local and international commercial disputes”.

In a statement by presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, the President said he considered the huge amount spent on the Ajaokuta Steel Complex as a money well-spent.

“The process has cost this Federal Government over $400 million so far, but I consider it money well spent as we move closer to achieving our objective of transforming Kogi State into Nigeria’s iron and steel powerhouse.

“The benefits of getting Ajaokuta Steel Complex working again are numerous. It would provide over 500,000 estimated jobs and more than $1.6 billion in annual income to the Nigerian economy. Nigerians can rest assured that I remain committed to seeing this process.”

Buhari, who was welcomed by Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, also spoke of the determination of his administration to position the state as an industrial hub as well as a solid mineral power base.

During the state-visit, the President commissioned the Reference Hospital Okene, the new Ohinoyi’s Palace at Okene, the Ganaja Junction Flyover and interchange at Lokoja, the Muhammadu Buhari Square (Civic Centre) in Lokoja, amongst others.

The Minister of Mines and Steel Development,  Mr Olamilekan Adegbite says workers are retained at the Ajaokuta Steel Company to protect the Infrastructure from vandalism.

Adegbite said in Abuja on Sunday that it was important to keep the place running.

He said the reason why successive governments could still talk about the company was because of the few workers keeping the place running.

“The steel territory where Ajaokuta sits is about three times bigger than the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

“So, you can imagine an investment of that magnitude being left without people to maintain.

“If everybody is withdrawn from there, we would not be sitted ere today talking about Ajaokuta because it will not exist anymore.

“You know who we are. If that place is left like that people will cannibalise the place and turn everything into scrap,” he said.

He said the plants were still functional, adding that at full production, the company was capable of employing more than 10,000 workers.

On whether or not the company had produced anything steel since its establishment in the 70s,  Adegbite said it had produced at certain period.

He said, “Ajaokuta has actually produced at certain period.

“It is only that it has not  produced liquid steel, which is the ultimate because it can be converted into any desired metal.

“Billets were being imported from abroad, so Ajaokuta has always functioned  in one way or the other.

7’So, all these years, alot of investment has gone into training people toward steel production.

“People went on secondment while others were sent for first degree and  Masters.

“So many people were trained in Russia  because it was built by the Soviet Union  in those days.”

The minister further said the workers, some of whom had retired had kept hope alive that Ajaokuta steel company would work.

He said, “these hands were kept together because we do not want to lose them”.

On argument as to whether or not the non-take-off of the company was because the  “gods are angry” the minister said the communities had been carried along over the years.

This gesture according to him is to show respect for the people and their culture.