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Dana Steel Commissions N5.4bn Billets Plant

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16 years ago

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Dana Steel Limited, Core investor in the Kastina Steel Rolling Company has recorded a milestone in its privatization Post Acquisition plan (PA) with the commissioning of its new 180,000 metric tons billets manufacturing plant.

The N5.4 billion plant (steel melt shop) is a major step in the company’s integration strategy meant to boost the operations of the steel mail significantly.

An excited Jacky Hathiramani, managing director, Dana Steel, expressed appreciation to the Federal Government, government and people of Katisna State for the belief and support in ensuring that the plant comes on stream.

“With the steel melt shop now operational Dana steel will now cast its own billets from metal scraps. This would lessen the mills dependence on purchased billet by up to 81 per cent, and improve over all efficiency and gross profit margins. The rolling mill has installed capacity of 207,000 metric tons’.

Hathiramani noted that prior to the commissioning of the plant, Dana steel had to rely on billets imported mainly from Ukrine, Brazil, China, and Russia.

“The lengthy import cycle, need to stock a substantial supply of billet to cushion against outages necessity of road transport, and the need to pre-pay for imports resulted in an extremely long working  capital cycle, requiring large amounts of cash borrowing to feed working capital needs. This led to high interest expense and depressed margins”, he noted.

Since taking over the moribund Katsina, Rolling Steel Mill in December 2006, the Dana Group has invested heavily in the refurbishment of the plant. So far, the entire induction furnace and mill have been completely renovated and up dated   with the latest technology. Three sizes of bar are currently produced: 12mm (50 per cent of sales Comm (25 per cent of sales) and 16mm (25 per cent of sales).

Dana Steel limited is a subsidiary of Dana Group, a conglomerate with business interest in different sectors of the Nigerian economy including chemicals, pharmaceuticals, plastics, electronics, FMCGs, automobiles and aviation.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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9 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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9 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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9 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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