‘Bad Road, Traffic Not A Threat To Viability Of $1.5bn Lekki Deep Seaport’

Ahead of the commencement of commercial operations at Lekki deep seaport, the Lagos state government, on Monday, reassured maritime stakeholders that bad road, traffic wouldn’t be an inhibition to seamless cargo evacuation from the $1.5billion seaport.

LEADERSHIP reports that the Lekki deep seaport is the biggest and deepest seaport Nigeria with a depth of 16.5meters and when operational, the port will become one of the most modern ports in West Africa and Central Africa and will support the growth of commercial operations in the region.However, speaking at the Lekki Deep Seaport Construction Completion Ceremony, the governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said the state will keep to the promise of ensuring the completion of the road from Eleko Junction to Ajah and from Eleko Junction back to the port.

“I am going to meet with the contractor in charge of the road construction to give them marching order to ensure the completion of the 6-lanes highway to Lekki Port and that the road does not constitute any traffic gridlock during container evacuation,” Sanwo-Olu said.
He also urged the host communities to clear all the shanties along the right of way to provide ample ambiance to the transport system within the port city.

Earlier in his welcome address, chairman, Lekki Port board of directors, Biodun Dabiri, said the port will begin full commercial operations after the presidential commissioning which is expected to take place soon.
According to him, the Lekki Deep Seaport will contribute immensely to the growth of the Nigerian economy, creating about 170,000 direct and indirect jobs.

He said the port is expected to generate approximately $361 billion during the period of the concession, and generate over $201 billion in revenue for both Lagos state and the federal government after the developer has fully liquidated the debt received to facilitate the port development.