The Ogun State government has signed memoranda of understanding with DP World for the development of a deep seaport and a 10,000-hectare special economic zone with an initial investment of more than $7bn.
The agreements were signed in Paris, France, on Thursday, in the presence of President Bola Tinubu, according to a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The proposed Gateway Deep Seaport at Ogun Waterside will have a four-kilometre berth and an 18-metre draft, allowing it to handle larger vessels and ease pressure on the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports.
The Ogun State Blue Marine Special Economic Zone is planned to cover 10,000 hectares. The Federal Government projects that the projects will create more than 50,000 direct jobs when fully developed, alongside additional indirect employment.
Tinubu said the agreements envisage an initial investment of more than $7 billion in Nigeria and would support non-oil exports and manufacturing.
“These agreements envisage an initial investment of more than $7 billion in the Nigerian economy. At full development, the projects are projected to create more than 50,000 direct jobs and many additional indirect opportunities, while generating substantial non-oil export earnings,” he said.
The proposed port is expected to reduce congestion along the Lagos port corridor and cut logistics costs and delays for importers, exporters and consumers.
It is also expected to provide access to larger, deeper-draft vessels and serve as a trade gateway to the African Continental Free Trade Area, which covers a continental market of approximately 1.4 billion people.
Tinubu said the Federal Government would provide regulatory and institutional support for the projects and facilitate road, rail and power connections to the area.
“We will facilitate road, rail and power connectivity; strengthen investment security and our maritime domain; and remove unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles,” the President said.
He also said the projects would form part of a wider industrial corridor around the proposed Nigerian Navy Operating Base and Dockyard and the OK LNG Project.
“The Gateway Deep Seaport is the critical infrastructure that will support the zone’s viability. A port moves cargo; a port integrated with a special economic zone helps to build an economy. Each reinforces the other,” he said.
The President said the 28-kilometre Ogun section of the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway would provide a transport link between the port, the economic zone, Lagos and the Nigerian hinterland.
The highway section is part of the 700-kilometre coastal road, which the Federal Government said is scheduled for completion before the end of 2026.
Governor Dapo Abiodun led the Ogun delegation to the signing ceremony. The delegation included state officials and a representative of the host community.
The event was also attended by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola; Nigeria’s Ambassador to France, Emmanuel Ayodele Oke; Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Abubakar Dantsoho; and DP World Group Chief Executive Officer, Yuvraj Narayan.
