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• How Nigeria’s bedrock of wealth became abode of rats, reptiles
• Communities, committee, investor bicker over revival failure, N15Obn proposed plant
• I have plans to revive NIGERCEM, but…. – Ibeto
From Uchenna Inya, Abakaliki
In its early days, the Nigerian Cement Company Limited (Nigercem) located in Nkalagu, Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, was the envy of all. It was the first indigenous cement manufacturing plant.
It was sited in Nkalagu because of its vast deposits of high-quality limestone, a primary raw material for cement production. It was developed in partnership with Associated Portland Cement Manufacturers of England, which provided technical expertise.
Established in 1954 by the government of the Eastern Region under the leadership of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, it was part of a bold industrialisation drive aimed at reducing dependence on imported building materials. The plant had over 5,000 workers
Nigercem quickly became a symbol of post-colonial economic pride. Its cement was used in major infrastructure projects, including sections of the Niger Bridge at Onitsha, roads, housing estates, and public buildings across Eastern and Mid-Western Nigeria.
At its peak in the 1960s and 1970s, the factory employed thousands of workers, directly and indirectly, and transformed Nkalagu from a rural settlement into a thriving industrial township.
The company provided electricity, schools, housing, and a hospital for its workers and created a level of prosperity that was rare in the region.
The Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970) dealt a heavy blow to the plant, with operations disrupted and facilities damaged. But the East Central State government revived production in the early 1970s and it regained its status as a cornerstone of the local economy.
The tides began to turn in the 1990s. In the following years after Nigeria’s return to civilian rule in 1999, the company began to decline due to mismanagement, lack of reinvestment, political interference, and broader economic challenges.
The situation worsened amid allegations of monopolisation in the cement sector, particularly pointing to market dominance by larger cement groups with the tacit support of the federal government.
Today, Nigercem stands as both a monument to Nigeria’s early industrial ambitions and a cautionary tale of how mismanagement, political interference, and monopolization can erase decades of progress.
The last cement production in the company was in September 2000. Since then, its once-busy factory has fallen silent, its machinery has been looted by vandals while its industrial township has slid into neglect.
The assets of the company have been stripped to the bare, its cables have been dug up and all the equipment removed. Nigercem is now like a forest and is worth nothing in terms of equipment.
One can only see dilapidated, old buildings which are being inhabited by rats, snakes and a few individuals who are homeless and desperate for shelter,
Some of the individuals are old staff of the company who have not been paid for 20 years without any compensation, pension or gratuity.
For Nkalagu and much of Ebonyi State, the plant’s closure meant massive job losses, economic stagnation and an exodus of workers to other parts of the country.
Revival efforts, N150bn for new cement industry
In July last year, Governor Francis Nwifuru set up a 15-member committee to revive the moribund industry as part of his administration’s drive toward industrialisation, economic growth and employment generation.
Nwifuru announced the setting up of the revival committee during a church service at the Government House Chapel, Abakaliki, capital of the state.
He reaffirmed his commitment to reviving the once-thriving cement factory, which has been dormant for decades.
The committee, he said, is tasked with liaising with core investors and shareholders to work out modalities for the immediate commencement of operations at the plant.
The governor gave the committee a two-week deadline to submit practical solutions that would enable the revival of the factory.
Members of the committee include Mrs Catherine Ogbu, Prof. Adline Idike, Hon. Iduma Igariwey, Associate Prof. Ben Odoh, Hon. Sunday Eze, Chief Ben Okah, Engr. Elias Mbam and Barr. Roy Umahi (SAN).
Others are: Sen. Chris Nwankwo, Sen. Ken Eze, Sen. Antony Ani, Sen. Onyekachi Nwebonyi, Sen. Sonni Ogbuoji, Sen. Obinna Ogba and Sen. Sylvanus Ngele.
“Reactivation of the NIGERCEM Nkalagu was part of my campaign promises when I visited the community.
“I assured the people that the factory would be revived within my first tenure in office,” Nwifuru said.
The committee had since submitted its report to the governor and did not make its report public. But Nwifuru, late November last year, announced that his administration will borrow the sum of N150bn to establish new cement factory in the state, an indication that the NIGERCEM revival committee may have recommended a new factory for the state.
Nwifuru disclosed his plan to build a new cement factory in his address during an event organised by the State Ministry of Budget and Planning for citizens’ input into the 2026 budget which has already been passed by the state House of Assembly and assented to by the governor. .
The governor explained that rather than continue to dwell in the intricacies involved in resuscitating the moribund NIGERCEM, the state government has considered it more rewarding to set up a brand new cement factory to harness the rich natural raw material deposit the state is endowed with.
He noted that though the project is expected to be funded by a loan, it has been designed in such a manner as to also yield returns to pay back the loan without interference with core revenue of the state.
Nwifuru said: “This is the first time we put borrowing in our budget. We have put a project we will borrow money to fund, while the project would generate money to pay back the loan.
“That project is a brand new cement factory owned by the state government. We will borrow up to N150 billion for a start,” he said.
We will resist new cement plant -Communities
Host communities of the NIGERCEM are not happy over the plan by the government to establish a new cement plant.
The communities want the moribund company revived instead of the proposed new cement factory. They alleged that the government want to build the new cement plant with the raw materials from NIGERCEM and expressed serious concerns over it.
The communities hold that the move threatens their land rights and the lawful future of Nigercem Plc.
In a letter dated January 7, 2026, addressed to Governor Francis Nwifuru, the communities, through their solicitors, Gamzaki Law Chambers, accused certain political actors of attempting to undermine existing legal agreements and court judgments relating to NIGERCEM.
The letter recalled that in 2010, Ibeto Group lawfully acquired majority shareholding in the industry and became its core investor. It noted that the subsequent revocation of Ibeto Group’s mining lease by the state government under the previous administration was challenged in court, with judgments delivered between 2010 and 2013 in favour of Ibeto Group and the host communities.
According to the communities, assurances were given by the present administration during the election campaign to collaborate with Ibeto Group to revive NIGERCEM .
They acknowledged that a 15-man committee was constituted in August 2025 to engage relevant stakeholders but lamented that no report or recommendations from the committee havd been made public.
The communities also expressed alarm over a meeting held on December 31, 2025, where certain individuals allegedly issued a fresh “consent letter” purporting to revoke earlier agreements granted to Ibeto Group.
The landlord communities insist that the proposed location for the new cement plant lacks commercially viable limestone deposits and that the project would depend entirely on limestone found within NIGERCEM host communities.
They rejected the authority of what they described as an unauthorized and self-appointed committee claiming to speak on their behalf.
While reiterating that they are not opposed to development or genuine efforts to revive NIGERCEM Plc, the communities warned they would resist any attempt to convert Nigercem into a mere limestone excavation zone or to strip them of the benefits of industrial development through political manipulation.
They called on the governor to convene an inclusive town hall meeting, halt unauthorized representations, disclose the government’s technical and financial capacity to revive NIGERCEM , and suspend any actions that could alter ownership or mineral rights pending broad consultation.
The communities concluded by expressing openness to constructive engagement but stressed that they would not accept any arrangement that sacrifices their rights or future for political expediency.
A resident of one of the landlord communities of NIGERCEM, Odinaka Emmanuel Eze said the communities cannot allow excavation of limestone in NIGERCEM for a new cement factory .
He described as falsehood the claim by the state government that there are limestone in different parts of the state which will be used as raw materials for the proposed cement plant and not that of NIGERCEM.
His words: “The landlord communities of NIGERCEM host areas (Nkalagu, Umuhuali, Amaezu and Nkalaha) cannot allow NIGERCEM PLC and our ancestral lands with large limestone deposits to be converted into a mere limestone excavation zone, creating dangerous environmental impacts in our communities, leaving us with no developmental project but only as a raw material source to run a new cement factory planned to be established in Izzi or sell to Chinese companies.
“All the lies that there’s limestone everywhere in Ebonyi suitable for cement production are revealed, as their studies show that only the Nkalagu axis possesses limestone deposits in commercial quantity (high-calcium limestone) with calcium carbonate grades reportedly conducive for cement production. They forgot that all stones are not limestone and cannot be suitable for a cement factory.
“We know what we are suffering as a result of large limestone deposits. In all the communities in Ebonyi, you can drill boreholes and get water, but we can’t comfortably get water due to large limestone deposits.
“The same government never cared about helping our people in that regard, but you want a few politicians that don’t represent the interests of our communities to issue you a consent letter so you can come and excavate our resources and ship them to your zone for industrial production and developing your villages or sell to Chinese companies.
“The same government never cared to even appoint any of our people as a commissioner or in any high position of the government, aside from promises to those they will eventually disappoint.
“The same government is empowering other clans with contracts, making them billionaires, as seen in the media recently, but only feeding a few folks from our clan worshipping them with only peanuts as they’re virtually struggling.
“Any plan that is not any of these – collaborate with Ibeto to revitalise the NiGERCEM industry, reclaim the ownership from Ibeto to revitalise the industry as a solely state-owned cement industry, or establish a new one within the host communities with the required large commercial limestone deposits – we would resist it. You can’t come and be mining the resources in our land and leaving us with dangerous impacts you would never care about reducing.
“For the few ones from our clan who may wish to sabotage the common interests of our people, sell our proprietary rights and the lawful future of the NIGERCEM PLC in the name of a consent letter without our agreement just for their selfish and deceptive political agenda, I believe you’ve tasted small hatred and disrespect as he kept you people at Oferrekpe Agbaja without food from morning till evening and eventually came out when he knew you people were already exhausted and issued his statement without allowing any of you to give your opinion.
“You’d rather come back to your senses. The interests of the large Igbo-Eno communities will stand at the end. We can’t just be an excavation zone; we deserve the industry and other development. If you’re disrespecting Igbo-Eno communities and the revitalisation of a critical industry in her zone, disregard the raw materials in their zone as well.”
Revival committee, commissioner tackle core investor, back new cement plant
The committee set up to revive the industry has supported governor Francis Nwifuru to establish a new cement plant in the state.
The committee said the moribund factory has become an abode for reptiles, rats and individuals who are desperately looking for shelter.
Chief Ben Okah, Chairman of the revival committee who stated this while speaking with Saturday Sun, said the company has been totally stripped, with cables dug up and all the equipment removed.
He described its present condition as a forest. Okah said the state government was desirous of reviving the industry but that its core investor – Ibeto Group – has not shown any commitment to that effect.
“I saw a letter addressed to the governor by a lawyer who was briefed by somebody in UK. I saw the letter and the letter is filled with lack of information and if I may call it, a total mischief. There is no iota of truth in that letter because the person is very highly uninformed and he lacks knowledge of activities around NIGERCEM.
“Ibeto has about 30 per cent commodity shares in NIGERCEM and others have different sources of shares in NIGERCEM. Since Ibeto acquired the controlling shares in NIGERCEM, which is over 20 years, nothing has happened there and the agreement then was that within three years, NIGERCEM will be fully rebuilt.
“It is now 20 years plus and the assets of NIGERCEM has been stripped. So, NIGERCEM is worth nothing in terms of equipment.
“You can only see old buildings inhabited by rats, snakes and a few individuals who may be homeless, some of them old staff who have not been paid for 20 years, no compensation, no pension, no nothing. Some people are suffering whereas NIGERCEM is a bedrock of wealth.
“ If well harnessed for the state, it will certainly give us a lot of employment and revenue. So, for 20 years plus, the owners of the land that we called the landlord association, the public, the government, even the investor has not gotten anything from NIGERCEM. So, it is a hopeless situation.
“The state government is very desirous to assist Ibeto to start off NIGERCEM anywhere he wants it. The state government is very willing and ready to assist Ibeto and we have been in dialogue with him since seven months. We visited his office in Port -Harcout and had communication with him.
“We are not seeing any sign that there is anything going on in NIGERCEM. This is the actual situation. In the event that Ibeto will restart NIGERCEM, it will be good for everybody including himself Ibeto, the state and the community.
“Now, the state government wants to establish a cement factory and Ebonyi State has quality limestone. The young man who wrote the letter to the governor said that the limestone in other parts of the state will not be the same quality of NIGERCEM. This is pure ignorance and lack of knowledge. He is not well-informed. The state has large deposit of high quality limestone that is good for making cement.
“So, the state government is desirous of establishing their own cement factory because the state needs cement. All the roads built are built with cement base and a lot of infrastructure coming up are going to be built with cement. The state government is buying cement as far away as Calabar, Ogun State and other places and that increases the cost of cement.
“So, whether NIGERCEM is working or not, the state wants to build its own cement factory and I can assure you that nobody is going to infringe on NIGERCEM deposits to build another cement factory,” he said.
Meanwhile, the state government has accused the major shareholder of NIGERCEM , Chief Cletus Ibeto, of frustrating efforts to resuscitate the factory.
The Commissioner for Solid Minerals Development, Chidi Onyia, stated this during an interaction with Saturday Sun.
He insisted that the state will not allow itself to be held to ransom while pursuing industrial development.
The commissioner was responding to allegations by host communities of the moribund industry who accused the state government of being less enthusiastic about reviving NIGERCEM despite earlier efforts, including the setting up of a committee.
On the fate of NIGERCEM, Onyia said successive administrations have faced serious challenges, particularly due to ownership structure and lack of cooperation from the core investor.
“Had it been that the state government had total ownership of NIGERCEM, it would have been easier to move decisively,” he said.
“But the same individual holding major shares has consistently refused to make available critical information demanded by the government. Anytime government shows seriousness, he allegedly mobilises people from the area to work against the process.”
He added that several companies have shown interest in partnering to revive the cement plant but were discouraged by conditions imposed by the core investor.
Onyia further lamented the state of infrastructure at the NIGERCEM site, alleging that most of the equipment and assets have been vandalised or lost.
“To be honest, talking about revitalization now is almost the same as starting afresh. Even the existing infrastructure could not be protected,” he said.
The commissioner stressed that while the government understands the emotional and economic attachment of the Nkalagu community to NIGERCEM, development decisions must be guided by economic realities.
“If it will cost N500 billion to revive NIGERCEM and ₦300 billion to establish a new cement factory elsewhere, which option would any rational government choose?” he asked.
On allegations by host communities that limestone deposits are exclusive to the NIGERCEM axis at Nkalagu and that the state plans to exploit those deposits for a new project elsewhere, Onyia dismissed such claims as misinformation.
According to him, Ebonyi State is richly endowed with limestone deposits of bankable quality in several locations beyond Nkalagu.
“It is a total deceit for anyone to claim that limestone exists only in Nkalagu,” “We have viable limestone deposits in Ngbo in Ohaukwu, Inyaba, Umezoka in Ezzamgbo, Edomie Ishielu, Ebonyi LGA among others.
“Some of these locations have calcium oxide content of over 42 per cent, which meets international standards for cement production.” Onyia said.
He explained that even when NIGERCEM was operational, limestone was sourced from areas outside Nkalagu, noting that pipelines were once run from parts of Ngbo to the factory.
He emphasised that if the state eventually decides to site a new cement factory in another location, it would still be within its rights to legally source limestone from any licensed deposit, including Nkalagu, in line with federal mining laws.
On concerns about environmental degradation and abandoned mining pits in some communities, Onyia acknowledged the problem and blamed poor regulation in the past.
“Many mining companies entered communities through informal agreements without government involvement,” he said. “Critical issues like reclamation were ignored. This administration is now paying attention to these concerns and ensuring that mining activities comply with the law.”
The Commissioner reiterated that the state government remains committed to industrialisation and sustainable mining, whether through revitalising existing assets or creating new ones through public-private partnerships.
“Our goal is a cement factory that will serve Ebonyi people for 30 to 50 years. We are open to partnerships, but we will not allow sabotage to stall the progress of the state.”
I have plans to revive NIGERCEM, but can’t show them to politicians-Ibeto
Reacting to the state government claim that he was not ready to revive the company, Chief Cletus Ibeto said he has good plans for NIGERCEM which he said he would not reveal to politicians inaugurated as revival committee by the government.
“I have good and solid plans to revive NIGERCEM and by the grace of God it will happen this year.
“The politicians in the 15-man committee are pushing me to reveal my business secret to them by releasing my financial documents to them and I refused.
“I have and I’m in possession of valid mining leases of NIGERCEM valid up to the year 2045 from the Ministry Of mineral & mining, and I am resolute to develop and bring back NIGERCEM’s lost glory. If it pleases God, no one can stop that,” he said.
