The President of Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has said that the moribund Ajaokuta Steel Complex may never work, insisting that global technological advancements have overtaken the project.

Dangote, who spoke on Tuesday in an interview with journalists, stressed that while no nation can thrive without a functional steel industry, Ajaokuta’s prospects remain dim.

The business mogul said, “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.”

Conceived in 1979, the Ajaokuta Integrated Steel Complex was designed to host a Metallurgical Process Plant, an Engineering Complex and auxiliary facilities.

More than 45 years later, the multi-billion-dollar project has failed to take off, dogged by mismanagement and corruption.

President Bola Tinubu had approved the restart of the light steel section of the plant after discussions with India’s Jindal Steel Group, which pledged $5bn investment in a new steel project in Nigeria during the G20 summit in New Delhi in September 2023.

Speaking further, Dangote, warned that Africa must avoid becoming a dumping ground for outdated industrial plans and imports that undermine job creation.

“But really, you know, come to think of it, we should be very careful, not only in Nigeria, but in the entire African continent. Because people are importing poverty into our nations and exporting our jobs out. And we have the most, you know, growing population in the world, the continent.” he cautioned.