Nigeria and Saudi Arabia have formed a strategic partnership to extract iron ore and process steel within Nigeria.
The collaboration was announced following a meeting between Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, and Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Minerals and Energy, Khalid Al-Musdaifer.
The initiative, detailed in a statement by the minister’s special adviser, Kehinde Bamigbetan, was made public on Monday, December 9, in Abuja.
The partnership is aligned with Nigeria’s industrialisation goals, particularly as part of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda.
Minister Alake highlighted the benefits of processing iron ore into steel domestically, which would generate higher value compared to exporting raw ore.
He also noted that Saudi Arabia, with its strong steel industry, is keen on sourcing iron ore from Nigeria.
A follow-up meeting is planned for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during the Future Metals Forum in January 2025.
Alake also met with other potential investors at the Resourcing Tomorrow event to discuss ways to foster sustained mining investment in Nigeria.
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