The Federal Government has signed an agreement with Premium Steel and Mines Limited to rehabilitate and modernise the long-shut Delta Steel Company, with the owners committing more than $1.3 billion and targeting a return to commercial production within 18 to 24 months.
CAPTIONS: The Minister of Steel Development, Prince Shuaibu Abubakar Audu (centre), flanked by the Permanent Secretary, Amb. Nura Abba Rimi; the Ag. Sole Administrator/CEO, National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO), Isinmidun Festus Loto; Chairman, Premium Steel and Mines Limited, Sahil Vaswani; and Vice Chairman, Premium Steel and Mines Limited, Mahesh Vaswani, during the signing of the Agreement for the Revival of the former Delta Steel Company, now Premium Steel and Mines Limited, held on Thursday, 20 August 2026, at the Ministry’s Headquarters, Abuja. CREDIT: Steel Ministry
The Federal Government has moved to revive the long-dormant Delta Steel Company, with its current owners, Premium Steel and Mines Limited, committing more than $1.3bn to rehabilitate and modernise the plant and return it to commercial production within 18 to 24 months.
The revival plan, which could create about 25,000 direct and indirect jobs, received a fresh boost on Thursday following the signing of a Sub-lease and Operations Agreement between the National Iron Ore Mining Company, Itakpe, and Premium Steel and Mines Limited.
The agreement is expected to address one of the major requirements for restarting the integrated steel plant: sustainable access to iron ore.
The development could mark a new attempt to resurrect one of Nigeria’s most ambitious industrial projects, which was commissioned in 1982 with an installed capacity of one million metric tonnes of liquid steel annually but later slipped into prolonged operational difficulties.
The plant, located in Ovwian-Aladja, Delta State, had operated at only about 25 per cent of its designed capacity before shutting down.
According to a statement released on Thursday by the Head of Press and Public Relations at the Federal Ministry of Steel Development, Salamatu Jibaniya, read, “The Federal Ministry of Steel Development has signed an agreement aimed at facilitating the revival and full operationalisation of the Delta Steel Company, now known as Premium Steel and Mines Limited, Ovwian-Aladja, Delta State. The agreement marks a significant milestone in the Federal Government’s ongoing efforts to reposition Nigeria’s legacy steel industry assets as a critical driver of industrialisation, economic diversification, job creation and sustainable national development.”
The government had privatised the company to Global Infrastructure Holdings Limited in 2005 in an attempt to attract private capital and revive operations.
However, the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria subsequently re-sold the company to Premium Steel and Mines Limited in 2015 in a bid to recover unserviceable debts.
Since then, the facility has remained inactive as an integrated steel plant.
Under the new arrangement, however, Premium Steel and Mines Limited is expected to invest more than $1.3bn in raw material exploration and exploitation, as well as the rehabilitation and modernisation of the steel complex.
The company has also committed to restoring the plant to its installed capacity of one million tonnes of liquid steel annually, subject to the availability of sustainable iron ore supplies.
The Minister of Steel Development, Prince Shuaibu Abubakar Audu, said the planned revival went beyond restarting an abandoned industrial facility, arguing that Nigeria’s broader industrial ambitions depended on its ability to produce critical materials locally.
“The revival of Delta Steel Company is not merely about bringing an old industrial facility back to life. 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 said.
He said the initiative aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the administration’s push to expand local manufacturing, create employment and unlock idle productive assets.
The minister added that the government would work with private investors but stressed that the success of the project would depend on more than financial commitments.
The ministry said the new agreement would provide a framework for collaboration between the Federal Government and Premium Steel and Mines Limited towards the rehabilitation and sustainable operation of the plant.
It is also expected to support the reactivation of the National Iron Ore Mining Company and the development of the Ajabanoko iron ore deposits.
The Federal Government said the project would create about 5,000 direct jobs and more than 20,000 indirect jobs while contributing to Nigeria’s target of producing 10 million tonnes of liquid steel annually by 2030.
For the government, however, the agreement will now face its biggest test: implementation.
The Ministry of Steel Development said the arrangement must move beyond paperwork and translate into actual mine development, plant rehabilitation, commercial steel production and sustainable employment within the agreed 18-to-24-month period.
