The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the ministry of transport, has granted approval to Mercury Marine Concession Company (MMCC) for the implementation of the first phase of the proposed Escravos Seaport Industrial Complex (ESIC), or rather the construction of Escravos deep seaport, in Delta State.
This was announced by Rear-Admiral Andrew Okoji, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MMCC, the company spearheading the development of the ESIC project.
Also Read: Escravos Seaport Complex to be developed by Port of Antwerp & MMCC
Mr. Okoji said that the firm has been directed to lodge in US$ 1bn as evidence of capacity to fund the construction of the port. “To lodge in your money, there are certain protocols that must be met and we are currently carrying out these protocols,” explained the CEO.
An overview of the project
Speaking at a maritime stakeholder’s forum in Lagos, research and development manager, Eng. Stephen Kema Okoja, said that the Escravos seaport is conceptualized as a modern deep seaport that would handle container Ro-Ro vessels, specialized cargo, and general cargo.
“The seaport is designed to primarily serve ESIC-1 and also support Nigeria’s regular international seaborne trade, thus increasing the contribution of Delta ports to Nigeria’s economic development as well as boosting contributions of Delta State seaports to Nigeria’s International seaborne trade by three percent,” elaborated the research and development manager.
The ESIC-1 at large grants Delta State direct multimodal transport accessibility to 70 percent of the Nigerian landmass, 4 geo-political zones, including Abuja and the littoral nations of the world.
“You have been talking about Lekki Deep Seaport for the past 20 years, but I assure you today, upon completion the Escravos Seaport will be a game-changer,’’ noted Rear-Admiral Andrew Okoji.
