By Peter Duru, Makurdi

The Benue State Government has intensified efforts to revive the long-abandoned Taraku Mills Limited in Gwer East Local Government Area, with plans to create more than 2,000 direct jobs and strengthen agricultural value chains across the state.

Managing Director of the Benue Investment and Property Company (BIPC), Dr. Raymond Asemakaha, disclosed this during an inspection visit to the facility, which has remained dormant since 2009.

Valued at over $50 million (about N70 billion), the agro-processing plant was designed to process maize, animal feed and soybean products. Asemakaha described it as a strategic asset capable of driving industrialisation and economic growth in Benue State.

He said the government was committed to restoring the factory to full operation, noting that reviving existing assets is more cost-effective than constructing new facilities.

According to Asemakaha, “despite years of inactivity, most of the equipment remains intact and in near-new condition due to the vigilance of the host community and security personnel who protected the facility from vandalism.”

He explained that an ongoing asset audit would determine the exact condition of the plant and the level of investment required for operations to resume saying “former technical personnel with institutional knowledge of the facility will conduct assessments and dry-run tests.”

Asemakaha said the government had learnt lessons from previous attempts to lease public assets to operators without the capacity to manage them effectively, stressing that “the revitalisation of Taraku Mills would create markets for farmers and stimulate economic activities in transportation and other sectors.”

He projected that the facility would directly employ at least 2,000 youths while generating thousands of indirect jobs. He also announced the immediate payment of five months’ outstanding allowances owed to security personnel at the plant.

A pioneer engineer at the factory, Mr. James Ikuve, said Taraku Mills was established as an integrated agro-processing company with maize and feed milling, as well as oil processing divisions.

Ikuve said the maize processing plant has an installed capacity of 120,000 tonnes annually, while the feed mill can produce 172,300 tonnes of animal feed yearly. He added that the soybean processing units can handle hundreds of tonnes daily, with the refinery capable of processing 100 tonnes per day.

According to Ikuve, the factory previously operated at about 75 percent of its installed capacity, with its last production run carried out in 2013 under Growrich Resort Limited.

Chairman of Gwer East Local Government Area, Mr. Timothy Adi, Civil Protection Guard Commander Mr. Joseph Sough and Assistant Director at the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Emmanuel Atsia, commended Governor Hyacinth Alia for the initiative, expressing optimism that the revival of the facility would create jobs, support soybean farmers and restore economic benefits to the community.