Nigeria signs $1.3bn Delta Steel revival deal

The Nigeria, through the Nigeria — Federal Ministry of Steel Development, signed a Sub-lease and Operations Agreement with Premium Steel and Mines Limited (PSML) to revive the dormant Delta Steel Company in Ovwian-Aladja, Nigeria — Delta State. The agreement, signed between the National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO) and PSML, commits PSML to invest over $1.3 billion in raw material exploration, plant rehabilitation, and modernization. The goal is to restore the plant to its designed capacity of one million metric tonnes of liquid steel annually and commence commercial operations within 18 to 24 months, subject to sustainable iron ore supply. The project is expected to create about 5,000 direct and 20,000 indirect jobs, support the reactivation of NIOMCO and development of the Ajabanoko iron ore deposits, and contribute to Nigeria's target of producing 10 million tonnes of liquid steel annually by 2030. The revival aligns with President Bola Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda. The plant, originally commissioned in 1982, had operated at only 25% capacity before shutting down. It was privatized to Global Infrastructure Holdings Limited in 2005 and later sold to PSML by the Nigeria — Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria in 2015. The government emphasized that implementation must translate into actual mine development, plant rehabilitation, and commercial production within the agreed timeframe.