Host communities of Premium Steel Limited in Delta State have resolved to halt the company’s operations due to alleged failure to revive the defunct Delta Steel Rolling Mill and pillaging of the company’s assets.
They made this threat after the management team of the company staged a walkout during an investigation being carried out by the House of Representatives Committee on Steel on Monday.
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The company’s management staged the walkout when the committee prevented its counsel to make a presentation after a motion by Ben Uzondu (PDP, Benue).
However, members of the communities in the Udu Local Government Area where the company is situated threatened that they will not allow the company to operate in any way again because of its disrespect for the legislature and its pillaging of the company’s properties.
The community members, who shouted on top of their voices, said Premium Steel Limited lacked the capacity to run the company.
The chairman of the LGA, Chief Jite Brown, lamented that the management team had failed to revive the company, alleging that it had turned the company’s school and other landed properties into cash cows.
According to him, it has been selling the land donated and raised the school fees making it hard for members of the communities to enrol their children or pay the exorbitant school fees.
Chairman of the Committee, Abdullahi Ibrahim (APC, Kogi) said the Managing Director (MD), Premium Steel must appear before the committee on Wednesday, November 3rd, 2021.
It could be recalled that Ben Igbakpa (PDP, Delta) had moved a motion in November 2019, titled “Need to Investigate the Collapse of the Delta Steel Company”, which was adopted by the House and ordered for the investigation.
The committee is to investigate the sale and the subsequent failure of Premium Steel and Mines Limited to revive and put the company back to operations and make recommendations.
Premium Steel is the current owner of the defunct, privatised Delta Steel Rolling Mill.
The Company was initially acquired by Global Steel Holding Limited and taken over by Assets Management Company Of Nigeria (AMCON) due to debt issues and then resold to Premium Steel.
Delta Steel Company was built at the cost of $1.89 billion.
According to BPE, 80% of the company was privatised and sold to Global Steel in 2005 while 30% was sold to Premium steel.
Global steel operated the company for eight months and stopped after collecting N30 billion loans from eight banks.
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