- Stellar Steel investing $400m in Ogun plant to produce hot-rolled coils and plates for local and export markets.
- Tinubu also projected 500,000 jobs from steel reforms and targets full operationalisation of Ajaokuta within three years.
President Bola Tinubu has outlined a target for Nigeria to produce 10 million tonnes of liquid steel annually and become a leading steel producer by 2030.
He made the declaration on Wednesday in Abuja while inaugurating the first stakeholders’ summit on the development of the steel industry, an event where he was represented by vice-president Kashim Shettima.
According to Tinubu, the steel sector will be repositioned as the “industrial heart” of Nigeria, capable of driving large-scale economic diversification.
The president linked his administration’s seriousness to the creation of the ministry of steel development in 2023, saying it was meant to unlock the nation’s mineral potential.
“For close to fifty years, we have carried the dream of becoming a regional steel powerhouse,” he said.
“We have moved past lamenting missed chances — our focus now is to make that future happen.”
Tinubu explained that his government had signed a memorandum of understanding with Tyazhpromexport (TPE) and its consortium to revive both the Ajaokuta Steel Company and the National Iron Ore Mining Company in Itakpe.
He added that offers from Chinese investors and other international partners were also being assessed, while a technical and financial audit of Ajaokuta — approved by the Bureau of Public Procurement — was ongoing to guide investor selection.
The president announced the start of a $500m project for five mini-LNG plants in Ajaokuta, undertaken in partnership with NNPC Limited and private sector operators.
He also disclosed talks with the ministry of defence and the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria to commence local production of military equipment at the Ajaokuta Engineering Workshop.
Plans, he said, include turning Ajaokuta into a multi-purpose industrial hub with a free trade zone, an industrial park, and a military-industrial complex.
Tinubu revealed that a $465m proposal was on the table to revive the Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria in Ikot-Abasi, which has faced years of operational and legal setbacks.
On Delta Steel Company, now Premium Steel and Mines, the president said the firm had committed to beginning rehabilitation and operations within 18 months, depending on raw material availability.
He further announced a $400m investment by Stellar Steel, a subsidiary of the Inner Galaxy Group, for a new plant in Ewekoro, Ogun State, to produce hot-rolled coils and plates.
The president projected that over 500,000 jobs would be created through the ongoing reforms, with Ajaokuta expected to be operational within three years.
“We already have a ten-year roadmap for the sector and a three-year plan to put Ajaokuta back to work,” he said.
He urged the private sector to work alongside the government to make the vision for Nigeria’s steel industry a reality.