The Edo State Government, Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd, and leading energy conglomerate Sahara Group have joined forces to drive the construction of the 17km stretch Ikpako-Ajoki road in Edo State, Nigeria to facilitate seamless trade and sustainable development.
The project is the brainchild of the Joint venture between the NNPC and Enageed Resource Limited, a Sahara Group upstream company, in collaboration with the Edo State Government. The project is scheduled to be completed within 18 to 24 months.
NNPC/Sahara JVs have been instrumental to the delivery of various projects in health, education, environment, and capacity building across the nation and Africa. In 2017, the NNPC and Sahara Group unveiled two ultramodern Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) vessels, Africa Gas and Sahara Gas to bolster LPG security in Nigeria and the continent. Both vessels continue to enhance access to clean energy, with Sahara Group targeting a further $1 billion investment in LPG infrastructure.
Speaking at the project’s flag-off ceremony, Governor Godwin Obaseki said the road that will among others boost trade, agricultural activities and facilitate oil and gas operations for the benefit of the state and the nation.
NNPC GMD, Mele Kyari said, “What we are witnessing here today is an endorsement of collaboration as a viable means of promoting national development. The successes realized from working with Sahara on various ventures reinforce the efforts of the Federal Government aimed at transforming the economy through credible and innovative partnerships. We commend the Edo State Government for playing a strategic role in this collaboration and we believe that the best is yet to come.”
Also speaking at the event, Temitope Shonubi, Executive Director, Sahara Group said the responsible energy giant was delighted to join forces with the NNPC, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), and the Edo State government to deliver the road that is expected to enhance tourism, trade, and support the movement of people, goods, and services to and from the communities.
Shonubi assured the residents of Ikpako and Ajoki communities as well as Edo State as a whole. He further stated that the State Government assures him that the project is been handled by a first-rate constructing firm and supervised by a professional consulting firm which will provide an additional layer of quality control to cover all the phases of the construction and extend to post-construction.
