Nigeria's steel giant awakens

July 18, 2006

By www.ANDnetwork .com

Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo on July 21 will inaugurate the first phase of the newly-completed Zuma Steel Rolling Complex, Jos, which will produce 210 000 tons of steel billet annually.

The Tide reports that Zuma Steel West Africa Ltd, are the new owners of the defunct Jos Steel Rolling Company.

The company paid over $6.2 million to acquire Jos Steel through a bid process conducted by Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) in 2005.

Speaking at a pre-commissioning briefing recently in Abuja , Zuma Steel managing director, Innocent Ezuma said he and his foreign partners invested over $7.8 million to refurbish the moribund Jos Steel Rolling company.

He said that his partners, Industrial Union of Donbass in Ukraine Republic, were not only interested in the metallurgical sector of Nigeria’s economy.

“They are also interested in investing in the gas and energy sector of Nigeria’s economy,” he said.

According to Ezuma, on completion, Zuma Steel would produce 210 000 tons of steel billet annually.

He said that the new company was designed to produce steel products such as iron rod, wire rod in coils and flat bars.

He disclosed that more than 680 technical staff would be employed when the first phase of the company comes on stream fully, adding that, over 1500 skilled workers would be engaged in the future.

According to Ezuma, his company has established working relationship with the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) to ensure easy transportation and distribution of its products nationwide.

“In the partnership, we intend to assist in upgrading their (NRC) facilities and in turn get paid through services they will render us,” he said

The Tide Online