FG Moves to Revive Delta Steel Company with $1.3bn

• The Federal Government took a major step towards reviving the dormant Delta Steel Company following a $1.3 billion commitment from Premium Steel and Mines Limited.

• A Sub-lease and Operations Agreement with the National Iron Ore Mining Company in Itakpe secures sustainable iron ore access for the plant.

• Full commercial operations at the Ovwian-Aladja complex are targeted within 18 to 24 months, with an annual capacity of 1 million metric tonnes of liquid steel.

• The project is projected to generate roughly 5,000 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect employment opportunities across Delta State.

August 21, () — The Federal Government on Thursday took a major step towards reviving the dormant Delta Steel Company, following a $1.3 billion investment commitment from its current owner, Premium Steel and Mines Limited.

Under the revised plan, Premium Steel will rehabilitate and modernise the Ovwian-Aladja complex in Delta State, with full commercial operations targeted within 18 to 24 months.

Momentum for the revival gathered pace with the signing of a Sub-lease and Operations Agreement between the National Iron Ore Mining Company in Itakpe and Premium Steel and Mines Limited.

Through the agreement, Premium Steel will secure sustainable access to local iron ore deposits, a critical requirement for running the integrated steel plant at its designed capacity of one million metric tonnes of liquid steel annually.

Originally commissioned in 1982, the complex later fell into prolonged operational paralysis after running at only 25 percent capacity. Earlier efforts to revive production through privatisation failed to deliver sustained operations.

Those efforts included a 2005 sale to Global Infrastructure Holdings Limited and a subsequent 2015 debt-recovery transfer by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria to Premium Steel.

Strategic Raw Materials and Industrial Framework

Under the new framework, Premium Steel is expected to commit substantial investment to raw-material exploration, mine development and the modernisation of the steel facilities.

Once operational, the project is projected to generate about 5,000 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect employment opportunities across Delta State, while also helping to rebuild activity throughout Nigeria’s domestic steel value chain.

Minister of Steel Development, Abubakar Audu, said the plant’s revival goes beyond restoring a dormant industrial asset, describing it as part of the government’s broader push to strengthen local manufacturing under President Bola Tinubu’s economic programme.

“The revival of Delta Steel Company is not merely about bringing an old industrial facility back to life,” Audu stated during the agreement ceremony. “It is about restoring Nigeria’s capacity to produce steel locally, creating opportunities for our young people, supporting downstream industries and strengthening the foundation for sustainable industrialisation.”

Audu also stressed that private investment alone would not guarantee the project’s long-term success. Reliable electricity, efficient transport infrastructure and coordinated government policies, he said, would be essential to supporting sustained steel production.

“The Federal Government is committed to working with responsible private-sector investors to unlock the enormous potential of Nigeria’s steel sector, while ensuring that investments are supported by the necessary raw materials, infrastructure, policy coordination and enabling business environment,” the minister added.

Infrastructure Integration and Production Targets

Beyond the plant itself, reopening the Ovwian-Aladja complex is expected to stimulate activity across several interconnected national infrastructure assets.

Higher production would increase freight movement along the Central Rail Line and boost vessel traffic at the Delta Steel Company Jetty, linking mining operations with rail transport, maritime logistics and heavy manufacturing.

Rehabilitating the complex also supports the Federal Government’s ambition to raise Nigeria’s annual liquid-steel production to 10 million tonnes by 2030.

Achieving that target, however, will depend on moving quickly from contractual commitments to tangible work on the ground.

For Premium Steel, the immediate test will be whether the $1.3 billion commitment translates into mine development, plant refurbishment and, ultimately, commercial steel production within the projected 18-to-24-month window.

If delivered as planned, the revival would restore one of Nigeria’s most significant integrated steel facilities while creating roughly 5,000 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect employment opportunities, giving fresh momentum to the country’s push for industrialisation and a stronger domestic steel industry.