Ajaokuta Steel Mill

[3] Three-quarters of the complex have been abandoned, and only the light mills have been put into operation for small-scale fabrication and the production of iron rods.

The Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited was incorporated in 1979 under President Shehu Shagari who began the project which was 84% completed by the time of his removal from office in 1983.

[2] To supply the Ajaokuta Steel Mill with raw materials and connect it with the world market, in 1987, a contract was awarded to construction company Julius Berger for the construction of Nigeria's first standard gauge railway, from the iron mines at Itakpe to the steel mill at Ajaokuta, and later continuing to the Atlantic Ocean at Warri.

[6] The dispute was initially resolved in 2016, with Nigeria regaining control of the Ajaokuta Steel Mill in exchange for GIHL retaining the Nigerian Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO) operating at Itakpe.

In 2016, the Nigerian government awarded contracts to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation and Julius Berger to repair and complete the railway.

[12] According to Nigerian financial planner and economic strategy consultant Kalu Aja, a series of policy failures has prevented the Ajaokuta Steel Mill from being completed and put into operation 40 years after its construction first began.