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Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway Contract Awarded To Hitech Construction Company – FG.
By Anthony Beauty
Lagos – The award of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway construction contract has been granted to Hitech Road Construction Company by the Federal Government. The Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, made the announcement during a meeting held in Lagos with engineers from the Federal Ministry of Works and the contractor’s team.
Umahi highlighted that this project, aimed at improving national connectivity, aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s dedication to Nigeria’s restoration and rapid development. “President Tinubu is eager to fast-track the project’s commencement as part of his nation-improvement initiatives.” Umahi stressed.
The minister revealed that this initial meeting marked the first step, with another meeting scheduled in two weeks to finalize construction agreements. The project will be executed as a Public Private Partnership and will include tolls upon completion, with funding already secured by the contractor.
Phased Construction, Rail Integration, and Tolling Strategy.
Umahi outlined the project’s phased construction approach, including rail integration and toll collection strategy on every completed sections. The highway will link the Lagos-Badagry Expressway Superhighway, the Fourth Mainland Bridge, Lekki Deep Sea Port Road, and connect various points in Northern Nigeria via Ogoja-Ikom.
This highway will serve as a crucial link between South West, South East, the Niger Delta Coast of the South-South, and other regions, integrating with existing federal roads to promote economic and social development across the country.
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway will begin at Victoria Island near Eko Atlantic City, pass through the Lekki Coastal Road, Lekki Free Trade Zone, and the Dangote Refinery. It will connect Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Edo, Bayelsa, Rivers, Aqua-Ibom, and reach Calabar, with careful consideration for environmental and safety factors, particularly in oil-producing areas
The proposed project, spanning roughly 650 to 700 kilometers in its initial design, is set to incorporate rail lines running within the central lanes of the primary roadways.
Governor Umahi disclosed that this endeavor aims to invigorate the tourism sector and introduce industrial hubs encompassing hotels, factories, residential complexes, and various essential amenities.
The minister underscored the pioneering utilization of 11-inch-thick concrete roadways reinforced with 20-millimeter materials. This approach will promote local cement production, enhance steel manufacturing capabilities in Ajaokuta, and harness Nigeria’s abundant bitumen resources
In his words:
- “It is quite innovative and the giant of Africa is beginning to show her prowess and this is being revitalized by the captain of the ship, his excellency President Bola Tinubu.
- “So, this is beautiful. Another good news is that this is going to be built on a concrete road of 11 inches thick with 20-millimeter reinforcement.”
Minister Umahi further acknowledged that the project would face difficulties as it traverses mangroves, marshy regions, flood plains, and diverse soil compositions. Consequently, a blend of construction techniques, such as pile-supported decks, sand filling, and retaining walls, will be utilized to overcome these challenges.
In Umahi words:
“And so, there will be a combination of all kinds of construction methods, the deck on pile would be there, the sand filling would be there, the retaining walls would be there.
“So, it’s a very ambitious project, quite technical and highly rewarding.”
The second meeting, scheduled in two weeks, will focus on the business case study, allowing the project to progress to the design phase. Umahi noted that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is a groundbreaking project, the first of its kind in Africa.
“So, the second meeting will come up in two weeks where the business case study will be exposed to us, and we will give them a letter to own the project and then to engage in the design.
“The Lagos-Port Harcourt-Calabar Coastal Highway is the first of its kind in the whole of Africa,”
The Significance and Environmental Aspects of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway Project.
Nicholas Rizk, the consultant representing Hitech Construction Company, underscored the appropriateness of the chosen construction techniques for a country as vast as Nigeria.
He stressed the project’s far-reaching impact, spanning various geographical terrains and delivering substantial benefits to nine states along its course.
This highway, when completed, will forge critical connections at both national and international scales, serving as an essential conduit linking the South West, South East, South-South, Niger Delta, and other regions.
Moreover, it will seamlessly integrate with the existing federal road network, fostering economic and social progress throughout the nation
In Rizk’s words: “We are connecting nine states and this road.
“In addition to the integration at the national level for Southwest and Southeast, South-South and Niger Delta, it connects with the Federal Roads going from Lagos to Sokoto.
“From Warri to Kaduna, from Port Harcourt to Kano-Maiduguri, and from Calabar to Maiduguri.
“So as the Minister mentioned, we have this coastal highway that is more or less 10 to 12 kilometres away from the shorelines to consider the issue of erosion and the sensitive environmental areas.”
Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, as explained by Rizk, commences from Victoria Island near Eko Atlantic City and traverses through key points such as the Lekki Coastal Road, Lekki Free Trade Zone, and the Dangote Refinery. It ultimately links Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Edo, and culminates in Calabar. Additionally, Rizk outlined the project’s careful consideration of health, safety, and environmental concerns, with a special focus on regions involved in oil production.
IduwiniVoice recall that the Coastal Highway Project received traction over ten years ago when the Niger Delta Development Commission NDDC embarked on and completed the Survey, and submitted the report to the Jonathan Administration, whose sketchy moves to concession the project to a consortium Chinese firms fisseled away with the change of regime.
It remains to be seen if the Tinubu Administration can muster an inroad into arguably one of the largest construction ventures across Africa.
By Admin
In a major shake-up of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, President Bola Tinubu has dismissed Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) Mallam Mele Kyari and Board Chairman Chief Pius Akinyelure, along with all board members appointed in November 2023.
This development was announced early Wednesday in a statement by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga. The statement revealed that a newly constituted 11-member board will now oversee the affairs of NNPC Limited, with Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari taking over as the Group CEO and Ahmadu Musa Kida assuming the role of Non-Executive Chairman.
Additionally, President Tinubu appointed Adedapo Segun, who replaced Umaru Isa Ajiya as the Chief Financial Officer last year, as a board member. The board also includes six non-executive directors representing Nigeria’s geopolitical zones: Bello Rabiu (North West), Yusuf Usman (North East), and Babs Omotowa, former Managing Director of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), representing North Central. From the southern regions, Austin Avuru (South-South), David Ige (South-West), and Henry Obih (South-East) were also named as non-executive directors.
Further, Mrs. Lydia Shehu Jafiya, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, and Aminu Said Ahmed from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources will represent their respective ministries on the board.
The statement emphasized that “all the appointments are effective today, April 2.” It also outlined Tinubu’s rationale for the restructuring, citing Section 59, subsection 2 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021. According to Onanuga, the move is aimed at “enhancing operational efficiency, restoring investor confidence, boosting local content, driving economic growth, and advancing gas commercialisation and diversification.”
Furthermore, President Tinubu has tasked the newly appointed board with conducting a “strategic portfolio review of NNPC-operated and joint venture assets to ensure alignment with value maximisation objectives.”
Under Tinubu’s leadership, the federal government has been implementing major reforms in the oil sector to attract more investment. In 2023, NNPC recorded $17 billion in new investments, with the administration now aiming to increase that figure to $30 billion by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030.
The government also has ambitious targets for oil and gas production. The goal is to raise daily crude oil output to two million barrels by 2027 and three million barrels by 2030. Likewise, gas production is expected to reach 8 billion cubic feet per day by 2027 and expand further to 10 billion cubic feet daily by 2030.
Additionally, Tinubu has charged the new board with increasing NNPC’s crude oil refining capacity. “The new board is expected to elevate NNPC’s share of crude oil refining output to 200,000 barrels by 2027 and reach 500,000 by 2030,” the statement noted.
The newly appointed board chairman, Ahmadu Musa Kida, hails from Borno State. A graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, with a degree in civil engineering, Kida also holds a postgraduate diploma in petroleum engineering from the Institut Francaise du Petrol (IFP) in Paris.
His career in the oil and gas industry began at Elf Petroleum Nigeria before moving to Total Exploration and Production as a trainee engineer in 1985. He later rose to the position of Deputy Managing Director of Deep Water Services at Total Nigeria in 2015. Last year, he became an Independent Non-Executive Director at Pan Ocean-Newcross Group.
Beyond his contributions to the oil sector, Kida is well-known in the sports community as a former basketball player and the President of the Nigerian Basketball Federation (NBBF).
Bashir Bayo Ojulari, the newly appointed NNPC Limited Group CEO, is from Kwara State. Before his appointment, he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Renaissance Africa Energy Company. His recent efforts led a consortium of indigenous energy firms in the $2.4 billion acquisition of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).
Ojulari is also a graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, with a degree in mechanical engineering. His career started at Elf Aquitaine, where he became the first Nigerian process engineer before transitioning to Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd in 1991. Over the years, he worked in various roles in Europe and the Middle East, excelling as a petroleum process and production engineer, strategic planner, field developer, and asset manager.
In 2015, Ojulari was appointed Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO). He also served as chairman and a board trustee member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE Nigerian Council) and is a fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers.
President Tinubu expressed gratitude to the former NNPC board members for their contributions, particularly in overseeing the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries. Their efforts led to the resumption of petroleum product production after years of inactivity. He wished them success in their future endeavors.
By Divine Perezide
President Bola Tinubu has appointed Dr. Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe, a former senator from Kwara Central, as the new Chairman of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA). The appointment, which took effect on March 11, 2025, is set for an initial term of four years.
The announcement was made by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, on Sunday. Dr. Oloriegbe, a seasoned healthcare professional and policymaker, previously led the Senate Committee on Health between 2019 and 2023. He also chaired the Joint National Assembly Committee on Health, where he played a key role in shaping health policies.
Dr. Oloriegbe brings a strong academic background to his new role. He holds a Master’s degree in Coaching and Consultation from the University of Oxford and HEC Paris, along with a Bachelor’s degree in Medicine and Surgery from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. His professional affiliations include membership in the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), the Association of General and Private Medical Practitioners of Nigeria (AGPMPN), and the International AIDS Society (IAS).
His appointment is expected to strengthen the NHIA’s leadership and enhance health insurance accessibility in Nigeria. This decision aligns with President Tinubu’s boader strategy of appointing experienced professionals to key positions in the health sector to drive meaningful reforms.
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