The Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Financing (EPC+F) contractor, High Tech Construction African Limited that was awarded the 700-kilometre coastal highway has failed to raise the needed funds for the construction of the project, according to the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi.
Umahi said the development led to the withdrawal of the agreement and sourcing the funds from the government to fast-track the project.
According to him, the Federal Executive Council has approved a contract of N1.067trn for the construction of the first phase of the coastal highway.
The first phase is a 47.47km dual carriageway that has five lanes on each side and a train track in the middle.
The 700km road cuts across nine states, with two leading up north.
“But we also have two spurs that lead to the north, from the ongoing Badagry-Sokoto route and the one that leads to the Trans-Sahara route that goes from Ogoja down to Cameroon. Now, it is a dual carriage way and each carriage way has five lanes and a provision for a train infrastructure that will be in the middle.”
The minister explained that FEC had earlier approved the project to be procured under EPC+F (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Financing) but the contractor, High Tech Construction African limited, could not get the required funds.
Umahi said, “So, the ministry went back to Mr. President to ask for two things: We asked ‘can we fast track this?’
“Since this project was going to be procured in two phases and multiple sections, can we get the federal government to fund the phase one, which is what is 47.47km running from Ahmadu Bello in Lagos down to Lekki Deep Seaport? Mr. President graciously approved.
“Then the third section is to start from the end of the road, which is Calabar and so that’s about 50 kilometers, and it’s procured under section three of phase one, and is running from Calabar and going towards Akwa Ibom and towards Port Harcourt.
“Then the other sections and other places will still be under EPC+F in favour of High Tech Construction Africa Limited. But let me also announce that the road is going to be constructed with concrete and they are masters in that.”
Umahi also lamented the impact of inflation on the cost of construction. He said the cost of asphalt particularly has risen by over 1,400 per cent between 2006 when some contracts were awarded to date.
He said, “The prices of construction materials, like in 2006 we should be expecting asphalt to cost about N2000 per meter square, and today’s cost is between N27,000 and N30,000 per meter square.
“The same thing goes with diesel; the same thing goes with cement. And so, some of these projects are stuck.