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Nigeria Starts Talks With Russian Company on Revival of Steel Mill Project, Ministry Says

In early March, Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar visited the Russian capital, Moscow, and discussed bilateral relations with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. Lavrov described Nigeria as Russia's "priority partner on the African continent."
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Nigeria started talks with a Russian company on revival of steel mill project in the country's city of Ajaokuta, the country's Ministry of Information and National Orientation said.
On Thursday, the Nigerian Minister of Steel Development Shuaibu Abubakar Audu met with the Russian company Tyazhpromexport (TPE) – part of the country's Rostec – as well as Nigeria's Ajaokuta Steel Company (ASCL).
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He urged them to come up with a plan to revive the mill project as soon as possible in line with Nigerian President Bola Tinubu's "Renewed Hope Agenda," which seeks to ensure Nigeria's steel production and industrialization in the coming years.

"We came with our technical experts and are quite impressed at the current state of the Ajaokuta Steel Plant. We would do a full technical audit of the plant and then take a final decision. We are happy to come on board the resuscitation of the steel plant for the benefit of Nigerians," General Director of TPE, Sergey Egorov, said.

The minister also expressed his intention to visit Moscow at the invitation of TPE for further negotiations to secure the $2 billion funding needed to revive the plant. According to him, if the project is successful, it will be a significant step towards the industrialization of Nigeria.