By Oluyinka Onigbinde
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has disclosed that physical work on the long-awaited $1 billion port modernisation project is expected to commence before the end of the third quarter of 2026, as the agency intensifies stakeholder and host community engagement ahead of contractors’ mobilisation to site.
The assurance comes amid growing concerns within the maritime industry following reports that Nigeria has already commenced repayment of the foreign loan secured for the project, including interest, despite the fact that construction work has yet to begin.
Responding to enquiries by our correspondent the General Manager, Public Affairs of the NPA, Mr. Ikechukwu Onyemekara, said the authority is currently concluding the final non-construction activities required before the contractors move to site.
According to him, stakeholder and community engagement have become necessary because of the scale of construction activities expected during the execution of the project.
“We are looking at the end of this quarter,” Onyemekara said.
“As of now, we are preparing for stakeholder engagement and community engagement ahead of the commencement.
“You know, when they start, there will be a lot of construction activities—heavy equipment, noise and all that. We want to sensitise the stakeholders and the host communities about what is coming so that everyone understands the scope of the project.
“But we are looking at the end of this quarter for them to commence.”
His comments represent the clearest indication yet from the NPA that the much-delayed port rehabilitation programme is finally nearing implementation.
The modernisation project is one of the biggest infrastructure renewal programmes ever undertaken in Nigeria’s maritime sector and is expected to address decades of infrastructure decay at the country’s premier seaports, particularly Lagos Port Complex, Apapa, and Tin Can Island Port.
Recall that the project gained momentum in 2024 when the Federal Government signed a financing agreement with the United Kingdom Export Finance (UKEF) to support the first phase of the port rehabilitation programme. The facility is expected to finance the comprehensive reconstruction of critical port infrastructure that has deteriorated after decades of intensive use.
The agreement followed the Federal Executive Council’s approval of the project, with the NPA explaining that most of Nigeria’s ports were constructed between the 1970s and 1980s and have since outlived their original design life, making extensive rehabilitation unavoidable.
Industry stakeholders have repeatedly warned that the deteriorating condition of quay walls, collapsed pavements, obsolete drainage systems, ageing utilities and inadequate cargo handling infrastructure have significantly reduced operational efficiency and increased the cost of doing business at Nigerian ports.
Investigation by Shipping Position Daily revealed that the modernisation programme is expected to involve the reconstruction and strengthening of quay walls, rehabilitation of terminal pavements and internal roads, replacement of ageing engineering infrastructure, improvement of navigational facilities, installation of modern port equipment and expansion of operational capacity to accommodate larger vessels and increasing cargo volumes.
The project is also expected to improve vessel turnaround time, reduce cargo dwell time, lower logistics costs, enhance safety and position Nigerian ports to compete more effectively with rapidly expanding ports in neighbouring West African countries.
However, questions have continued to trail the slow commencement of the project after reports emerged that Nigeria had begun servicing the loan facility obtained for the programme, leading stakeholders to demand clarity on when actual construction would begin.
The NPA’s latest assurance is therefore expected to ease concerns among port users who fear that continued delays could increase project costs, while the country continues to incur financial obligations on the facility.
If the current timeline is achieved, contractors are expected to mobilise to site before the end of September, marking the beginning of a project widely regarded as critical to unlocking the full potential of Nigeria’s maritime sector and supporting the Federal Government’s blue economy agenda.
