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$500m Lagos, Abuja terminals open August-FAAN
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… to shut down old terminal for repairs, relocates airlines, others
Federal Government through the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has concluded to close down the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos terminal for total rehabilitation of the 39 year old facility by relocating flight operations to the new multi-million dollar ultra-modern terminal beside it.
This is coming as the Federal Government plans to commission the new terminal August this year as the Chinese contractors, China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) are speeding up work on the project which had failed its deadline on two occasions.
Spokeswoman for FAAN, Mr. Henrietta Yakubu made the disclosure while acceding to the request of Woleshadare.net to conduct inspection round the facility at the weekend.
Yakubu said once the new terminal opens middle of this year, the old international terminal which has served passengers, airlines and other airport users for nearly four decades would be shut down for total rehabilitation, adding that after completion of major works, the two terminals would be put to use to ease congestion and help in seamless processing of travellers.
Her words, “The Managing Director of FAAN, Saleh Dunoma has stated that the new terminal would be opened middle of this year. Once the new terminal opens, FAAN will shut the D Wing of the terminal and reopen to concentrate on the other wings.”
“As you can see that they are already working on the chillers, cooling system and other facilities.” Nigeria had in 2013, begun upgrading her aviation infrastructure to showcase the country’s rising profile as Africa’s economic powerhouse.
With a $500 million loan from the Export and Import Bank of China, five airport terminals at its principal aviation hubs are under construction by the China’s CCECC.
Apart from the international terminal at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, the other international terminals under construction are in Abuja, Enugu, Kano and Port Harcourt.
The Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport in Abuja is projected to serve 16 million passengers annually, up from its current capacity of 5 million.
The remaining three terminals: Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu, Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano and the Port Harcourt International Airport will serve seven million passengers each upon completion.
With a capacity for 25 million passengers per annum from the current seven million passengers it presently serves, the international airport in Lagos will retain the lion’s share of the projected capacity of 62 million passengers for the nation’s new aviation hubs.
Despite the promise which the project holds for commercial flights in Nigeria’s dominant economic centres, uncertainty surrounded the immediate completion and future sustainability of these airport terminals.
The $500 million loan for the five airport terminals was part of a bigger $1.1 billion credit facility obtained from the Export and Import Bank of China for the building of critical infrastructure that includes the Abuja Light Rail and the Galaxy Backbone ICT projects.
Both Chinese-funded aviation and rail projects are being executed by CCECC, a symbol of Beijing’s growing influence in Africa.
Builders and construction firms stated that this strategic policy of the Chinese government—giving with one hand and taking back with the other, undermines the competitiveness of Nigeria’s construction firms and outsources domestic jobs to Chinese expatriates.
Michael Babajide, a Nigerian passenger stated, “We hope when the new terminal is ready for use, it will be properly managed. This airport used to be among the best in the world but look at it now. In fact, it used to be worse, but some renovation works are going on now. All they need to do is to maintain the new one well and travellers won’t have to suffer like we used to do.”
A former Assistant Secretary General of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Mohammed Tukur said, ideally, this period should also be used to determine how the terminals will be managed upon their completion since the absence of a maintenance culture over the past decades led to the dereliction of the current terminals.
He called on FAAN enter into another agreement with CCECC on the future management of the terminal buildings.
“It is important that we create a holistic strategy for attracting foreign investors, especially from the private sector, to develop and manage Nigeria’s crumbling aviation infrastructure.
“Granted, we may also have to source for credit from abroad. Nonetheless, the knowledge of our home-grown experts is essential for transforming our airports into premier facilities that meets the demands of international travellers for business or leisure,” he added.
