As a follow up to the determined efforts of the Ebonyi State Government and the Ibeto group to operationalize the Nigeria Cement Factory, Nkalagu, a team of American Core Financiers, led by Armanda Wester, arrived the state on Monday.

Receiving the team at the Executive Council Chambers, Government House, Abakaliki, Governor David Umahi assured the investors of the guaranteed safety of their investment in the company.

Umahi noted that apart from having provided the required qualitative roads and other infrastructural facilities for their operational ease, the State Government has also evolved what he described as Investors Protection Act, which bestows on investors an irrevocable Standing Payment Order.

According to the Governor, the Act insulates the investor from Government interference and guarantees recovery of his investment in event of default.

Describing the Ibeto Group as a tested and trusted local and international brand name reputed for quality products, he expressed deep confidence that the establishment of the new NIGERCEM Plant would be successfully actualized to surpass all other brands.

Umahi further seized the opportunity to beckon on more investors from the United States of America to take advantage of the friendly atmosphere in the State to exploit further investment opportunities in the areas of Iron Ore, Salt, Lead, Coal and Agriculture among other natural endowment in the State.

Umahi said: “The Government of Ebonyi State is elated by the efforts being made by the Ibeto Cement Company, the core investor in NIGERCEM, in establishing a new 6,000 Tonnes Per Day dry process cement plant and 45 megawatts capacity power plant as first phase of the project at Nkalagu.

“Let me assure our visiting American Investors and Ibeto that the State has a law called Investors Protection Act.

“This law ensures that we offer an Irrevocable Standing Payment Order with special agreement, which insulates the investor from Government interference and any change of Government in practical terms, it means that such investor with any interference from Government will recover his investment from all funds accruing to the State Government by the Federal Government.”

In their speeches earlier, the leader of the Financier group, codenamed: “Actualization Team,” Armanda Wester, and a member of her team, Alfred DanClark, assured that with the basic facilities put on ground by the Government, investment in the new plant was a worthwhile venture.

They pledged to leverage on the assured goodwill of the people and the State Government with the ingenuity of the Ibeto group to bring the dream to full fruition as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the Chief Executive of the Ibeto group of Companies, Chief Cletus Ibeto, who brought the team to the State, in his remark re-emphasized his company’s determination to also establish another brand new cement factory at Effium in Ohaukwu Local Government Area of the State.

The team had earlier embarked on inspection tour of facilities in the over 30 decades moribund factory together with the Governor, members of the State Executive Council, legislators, traditional rulers and other stakeholders, where they were received by the Ishielu Council Chairman, Hon. Henry Eze.

Recall that the State Government had on July 20 received the visiting contractors and engineers of the new cement plant from the Sinoma Company of China.

Oswald Agwu.