Nigeria's Ajaokuta Steel Plant is set for the revitalization process in early 2025, according to Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content.
This follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in September between Shuaibu Audu, the Minister of Steel Development, and the Russian Tyazhpromexport, the original builders of the plant. The MoU covers the rehabilitation and operation of the plant.
“That means we are setting ourselves, our country, strategically to begin to manufacture the core components and machines that are utilised in the oil and gas sector,” Akpoti-Uduaghan commented on the upcoming rehabilitation of the plant.
Construction of the Ajaokuta Steel Plant, begun in 1979 with Soviet assistance, was nearly complete by the early 1990s but halted by the USSR's collapse. Today, only a small fraction of its capacity is operational.
The Nigerian government is keen on establishing a metallurgical plant to decrease the reliance on imported steel and meet the domestic demand with locally produced goods.