The Bodo-Bonny Road building project in Rivers State has seen a major budget boost authorized by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), bringing the project’s anticipated contract cost to N280 billion.
President Bola Tinubu presided over the FEC meeting on Monday in Abuja, during which this decision emerged as one of the major outcomes.
The updated estimated contract was announced in a statement released on President Tinubu’s Special Advisor on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga’s official X (formerly Twitter) account.
According to the announcement, the project was refunded N199.9 billion in 2021 after being originally given N120 billion in 2014. The government’s dedication to enhancing regional infrastructure is demonstrated by the FEC’s award of an extra 12-month deadline for the project’s completion and increased money.
“The council accepted the amended contract cost for the construction of the Bodo-Bonny Road in Rivers State, which includes bridges across the Opobo Channel. The contract was awarded in 2014 for N120 billion and was later updated in 2021 to N199, 923,638,963.87. The FEC approved an extra increment to N280 billion with a 12-month completion period,” according to the statement.
This FEC approval comes after Minister of Works David Umahi announced in June 2024 that Julius Berger Nigeria PLC would be able to finish the project with a final N280 billion approval from the federal government.
What To Note
The 34-kilometer Bodo-Bonny Road project was first awarded a N120 billion contract in 2014. It calls for the building of 13 bridges—three large and nine small—and one bridge that crosses a pipeline.
The project’s original funding plan was for Nigeria LNG Limited to contribute 50% (or N60 billion) and the Federal Government to provide the remaining funds.
This crucial route, which passes through Bodo, Afa, Opobo, and Nanabie, will link the oil-rich Bonny Island to Rivers State’s mainland. Some of the project’s salient features include a 1000-metre bridge over Opobo Creek, a 640-metre bridge over Nanabie Creek, and a 550-metre bridge over Afa Creek.
Julius Berger Nigeria Plc is carrying out the construction. A tripartite arrangement between Nigeria LNG Limited, Julius Berger, and the Federal Government of Nigeria brought it back to life.
In October 2017, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, the vice president, formally launched the project.
The tripartite agreement initially stated that no further cash would be needed to finish the project. However, the Federal Government first objected to Julius Berger’s proposal for an upward review of the contract in 2021, citing the original agreement.
As a result, the contractor decided to give up on the project, and the original contract amount was changed to N199.9 billion.
Following the contractor’s request for an upward review, the federal government’s final approval of N280 billion was revealed by the Minister of Works during an inspection visit to the site in June 2024, pending permission from the Federal Executive Council.
Now that the FEC has approved the updated contract with a 12-month delivery schedule, the project is anticipated to be finished by September 2025, a major step forward in developing regional infrastructure.
