The Federal Government, on Monday, took a major step in its plan to revitalise the steel sector as it signed a renegotiated concession agreement with Global Steel Holdings Limited for the Nigerian Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO), Itakpe.

By the new agreement, Ajaokuta Steel Complex has now reverted to the Federal Government, effectively freeing the entity from all contractual encumbrances that had left it uncompleted and non-functional for decades, while GSHL retains NIOMCO.

The new agreement, which came after four years of mediation, was signed at a short ceremony presided by the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, in his office at the Villa on Monday.

Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, signed on behalf of the government, while Chairman of GSHL, Prammod Mittal signed on behalf of the company.

The Minister of State for Solid Minerals Development, Hon. Abubakar Bwari; the International Mediator, Phillip Howell-Richardson, and top officials of the Ministries of Justice and Solid Minerals Development also witnessed the signing ceremony.

Speaking at the event, Prof. Osinbajo hailed the mediation process that led to the resolution of the problem that have made it impossible for the two national assets to be functional for years.

“It is one of the cases of failures. It is a tragedy of immense proportion that we have both Ajaokuta Steel Complex and NIOMCO and couldn’t get anything out of them for years”, said Vice President Osinbajo.

The Vice President who said making the entities to work was a top priority of the administration, urged GSHL to keep to the various timelines in the agreement in the spirit of mediation.

He added that it was important the concession work “so that Ajaokuta can take off too”.

Dr. Fayemi, who led the Federal Government side in the mediation process, said with the new agreement on NIOMCO, the next step is to commence the process of taking over Ajaokuta and ensuring that it is given out to a serious operator with proven technical and financial capacity.

Fayemi said, “It is our expectation that we would accomplish two things- bring NIOMCO to full function and starts the process of retaking Ajaokuta and then give it to a new operator.

“With this, we will move from being just a mineral nation to a mining nation.

“Once the first phase of the agreement is accomplished, it is the intention of the FGN to quickly move into accomplishing the objectives of concessioning the Ajaokuta Steel Plant to the most competent operator who meets the requirements of credible track record, technical capacity and financial competence.

“Overall, we are confident that this landmark settlement is a pointer to what to expect in the Government’s determination to fix the Nigerian mining sector. This is one of the key milestones in the Road Map for the growth and development of the Nigerian mining sector and I want to thank our team from the Federal Ministries of Justice and Solid Minerals for their hard work and also thank GSHL for sticking to the provisions of the laws in seeking resolutions to the problem”

Fayemi described the settlement as a landmark development that would help the diversification plans of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

The GSHL Chairman, Mittal, said the company waited for eight years to achieve this amicable settlement.