FEC Okays N20.36bn Infrastructure Contracts

Out of this, over N6.7 billion was approved for the construction of roads in Abaji Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

He said: “During the Federal Executive Council, I presented two memos on the FCT and both were on infrastructure projects in the satellite towns. The first one is the award for the construction of a road linking Yaba to Gurdi road in Abaji Area Council and that contract was approved for N4, 648, 255, 381.42 with a completion period of 20 months.

“Already the company is constructing the road linking Yaba town to the main Abuja-Lokoja expressway so this road is meant to open up the rural community which is very agrarian with a lot of water resources. As a matter of fact, it is the area where we usually have the FCT fishing festival.

“The second contract is for the third phase of the construction of roads within the city of Abaji which is in the southern tip of the FCT. This is about 8.4 kilometres and is intended to complete and complement the other roads that are already there. The contract is in the sum of N2, 128, 176, 102.50 with a completion period of six months and this will upgrade the infrastructure in Abaji town.”

Also speaking, Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, disclosed that FEC approved the sum of N2.2 billion for the extension of the runway at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos.

He said the approval will serve as a revised estimated total cost for the project.

“Today in Council, Aviation presented a memo for a revised estimated total cost for the extension and asphalt overlay of the Murtala Mohammed airport runway, which was rescoped to reconstruct and rehabilitate the taxiway bravo. The sum involved is N2, 272, 838, 724.84 and it has completion of twelve months,” the Aviation Minister stated.

He added that the extension and rehabilitation of the runway are essential for the city of Lagos, as it will improve the safety of the airport.

He added: “This central taxiway bravo is very critical to the operations of Lagos; it improves the efficiency and safety of that particular airport. It has been abandoned for the last 16 years or thereabout and in our own efforts to ensure that all projects are completed for the benefit of the country, its future and its fortune, in the wisdom of the Council chaired by the President, we approved that project and God willing that project will be delivered by this time next year.”

Under water resources ministry, the council approved a contract for the rehabilitation and construction of Lankang Irrigation Project in Plateau State.

The contract is in the sum of N634,184,783.93, inclusive of 7.5% VAT, with the completion period of 18 months and a defect liability period of 12 months.

According to the Monster of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, who spoke on the matter, it comprises the rehabilitation of 100 hectares of an existing pilot irrigation scheme and the expansion of that irrigation scheme by additional 500 hectares.

It also includes the reconstruction of existing damage water control and conveying structure, preparation of fields and fishponds and provision of adequate water for irrigation.

He stated: “It was approved in line with government’s policy to boost food production and security and in the coming months we will be seeing quite a number of projects, related to irrigation, that we will be presenting, in line with our irrigation and drainage project, in what we call the National Irrigation and Drainage Programme, 2016 to 2030, under which we hope to increase total acreage for irrigation in the country from the existing 130,000 hectares to 500,000 hectares.

“From the period that we started to date, our target was to have 100,000 hectares by 2020. As at January we had about 85,000 hectares, which is already completed. So we are still on target towards attaining the 100,000 for 2020, under the programme.”

On his part, the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, revealed that FEC considered and approved two memos he presented

for revision of project costs in aid of completion of the projects involved.

He said: “The first project is the Koton-Karfe-Lokoja section of Abuja-Abaji-Lokoja Highway. That cost was revised upwards by N3.076 billion.

“The reason was that about two years ago, there was a very bad accident on the Gudu-Hada Bridge that damaged the bridge; a truck caught fire, so the bridge has to be reconstructed.

“It was initially just to be repaired in the main contract. So we have to construct it as an emergency work then. Now the contractor has filed the claims for it.

“That’s part of it, then to provide additional access into Lokoja town and also to repair some of the sections that have failed because that road was awarded since 2006 so we are just trying to complete it.

“The second road is the Cham-Numan section of the Gombe-Yola Highway. The revision of the cost is by N7.607 billion. This is to cover the cost of replacing about 11kilometres of what we call black cotton soil.

“This is very bad soil on the side near Savannah. That soil always cakes when it is dry season, it gets meshy when it is wet season because it’s clay soil.

“So the contractor has to remove all of that soil over 11 kilometres and replace it with better soil and then build some drainages to deal with drainage challenges in that area. Council approved these two revisions.”

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