By Atoyebi Nike
President of Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has dismissed prospects of reviving the long-stalled Ajaokuta Steel Complex, insisting that technological progress has overtaken the project.
Speaking during an interview with journalists on Tuesday, Dangote stressed that while no country can thrive without a strong steel industry, Ajaokuta’s future remains bleak.
“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. And honestly, between us here, Ajaokuta will not work. We can keep deceiving ourselves. We can keep being passionate about this. It’s not possible,” he said.
The Ajaokuta Integrated Steel Complex, conceived in 1979, was envisioned to include a Metallurgical Process Plant, an Engineering Complex and auxiliary facilities. Over four decades later, however, the multi-billion-dollar project has remained idle, plagued by mismanagement and corruption.
President Bola Tinubu recently approved the restart of Ajaokuta’s light steel section after talks with India’s Jindal Steel Group, which pledged $5bn investment in a new steel project in Nigeria during the 2023 G20 Summit in New Delhi.
Dangote further cautioned that Africa must not allow itself to become a dumping ground for obsolete industrial ventures and imported products that undermine local job creation.
