Nigerian plan for rail link from mines to idle steel mill seen as a test for Buhari
Abuja — Nigeria’s plan to build a railway to supply iron ore to its idle Ajaokuta steel plant could be the biggest sign yet that President Muhammadu Buhari is implementing his policy to diversify away from oil. The project began in 1979 with what the World Bank in 2002 called obsolete Soviet technology, and remains uncompleted. Authorities want to revive it as part of Buhari’s effort to lessen Nigeria’s reliance on crude, which accounts for 90% of export earnings with the oil price down 64% on its 2008 record. Ajaokuta cost more than $4.5bn from 1979 to 1993, according to the World Bank. Its completion "would be one of the strongest indicators to date of the government’s stated commitment to economic diversification", said Manji Cheto, senior vice-president for West Africa at Teneo Intelligence of New York. "How the government deals with this will be important." The 275km railroad will link the plant to an iron-ore mine in the central Kogi state, the port city of Warri to the south ...
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