Tag: Ajaokuta

“Your doubts can’t Kill Ajaokuta” – FG counters Ɗangote

Aminu Imam
FG counters Ɗangote2

…As Aliko dares marketers, rejects ₦1.5tr subsidy demand A brewing face-off has emerged between the Chairman of the Ɗangote Group, Aliko Ɗangote and the Federal Government, as both sides traded words over the future of Ajaokuta Steel Complex and the politics of petroleum pricing. Recall that Aliko Ɗangote recently cast doubt on the viability of reviving the Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited (ASCL), citing outdated technology and global competitiveness concerns. He argued that the plant “would not work” under present industrial realities, even while acknowledging that no nation can thrive without…

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Ɗangote declares Ajaokuta Steel Complex ‘obsolete’

Aminu Imam
Ajaokuta Steel Complex

…Warns against ‘importing poverty’ President of Ɗangote Petroleum Refinery, Aliko Ɗangote, has said the long-delayed Ajaokuta Steel Complex may never come to life, arguing that advances in global technology have overtaken the project. Speaking in an interview with newsmen on Tuesday, Ɗangote stressed the importance of steel to national development but ruled out the possibility of reviving Ajaokuta. “The steel we are talking about, we will definitely look at the opportunities of doing that. There is no nation that you can build without a steel industry. Honestly, just between us,…

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FG, Russian firm sign deal to revive Ajaokuta Steel Plant

Aminu Imam
FG, Russian firm

The Federal Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the builders of the Ajaokuta steel plant, Messrs Tyazhpromexport, for the rehabilitation, completion and operation of the plant, and the National Iron Ore Mining Company. The Minister of Steel Development, Shu’aibu Audu, signed the agreement on behalf of the FG in Moscow, Russia, a statement by the ministrys spokesperson, Salamotu Jibaniya, stated yesterday. According to her, the MOU was signed when Audu led a Nigerian delegation to Moscow from September 14 to 21, 2024. The Ajaokuta Integrated Steel Complex,…

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Senate investigatesAjaokutaSteel coy over $496m settlement

Aminu Imam

The Senate yesterday resolved to carry out a thorough investigation on the affairs of Ajaokuta Steel Company Ltd and the National Ore Mining Company in Kogi State from 2008 to date. It planned to unravel the mystery behind the payment of $496m allegedly made to Pramod Mittal, Chairman, Global Infrastructure Holdings Ltd by the Federal Government in September 2022 as a settlement over said contractual disputes. It also resolved to investigate the circumstances that led to the re-concession of NIOMCO even when the initial Concession Agreement was validly terminated by…

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Failed Steel Project: N1.5bn staff pay, $496m payout to Indian firm spark NASS anger

Aminu Imam

The National Assembly is set to probe the $496 million paid by the Federal Government to an Indian firm which failed to revitalise the Itakpe Iron Ore Company after three years. This came up at a Joint Committee on Steel Development of the National Assembly, yesterday. Recall that the Global Infrastructure Holding Ltd. (GIHL) took over the National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO), Itakpe, Kogi State in 2016 and got its agreement terminated in 2019 due to non-performance. GIHL dragged the Federal Government to court for breach of contract and…

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“$400m spent to rescue Ajaokuta Steel Coy, money well spent”, Says Buhari

Aminu Imam

…As he commissions projects in Kogi President Muhammadu Buhari has said that the Federal Government has spent over 400 million dollars to rescue the Ajaokuta Steel Complex from legal liabilities. Speaking in Okene, Kogi State, during a town hall meeting at the newly renovated palace of the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, which he also inaugurated as part of his one-day state visit to the State yesterday, said the $400 million spent to rescue the Steel company is money well spent, adding that the project would generate 1.6 billion dollars annually and provide…

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FG to pay $496m to settle Indian firms claim over Ajaokuta Steel company

Aminu Imam

The Federal Government says it has agreed to pay $496 million to settle a multibillion-dollar claim by Global Steel Holdings Limited over the control of Ajaokuta Steel Company, according to the Attorney-General of the Federation, (AGF), Abubakar Malami. The AGF said the Federal Government will pay the company $496 million instead of the $5.258 billion demanded by the firm, to settle the dispute. The deal was reached under the alternative dispute resolution framework of the International Chamber of Commerce, said a statement by Malamis spokesperson, Umar Gwandu. The dispute followed…

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Buhari inaugurates 326KM Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri rail line

Ishaku Yohanna

to present 2021 budget next week Nigerias President Muhammadu Buhari has inaugurated the 326 km Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri rail line for commercial operation. At the commission which was done virtually, President Buhari described the rail project as an important link for the countrys economy and added that the rail line will link people across the cultural divides and expand the frontier of trade and commerce. The Railway Infrastructure that I have the honour to commission today is the rail line from Itakpe via the steel town complex of Ajaokuta to Warri, and…

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