The Lagos State Government’s plan to build an airport as a complement to the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, may encounter legal challenges, as an existing agreement with a terminal operator in the state prohibits the construction, The PUNCH has gathered.
If not overturned, the development of the new airport will breach an agreement already in place between Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited and the Federal Government.
On Friday, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu met with top officials from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority and the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria to advance plans for the airport’s construction in the Lekki area of Lagos State.
The discussions during this meeting reportedly focused on ways to accelerate progress on the proposed airport project.
According to sources familiar with the meeting, the governor not only sought professional guidance from the regulators but also requested the approval of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority to begin constructing the airport.
This move was supported by industry experts, who noted that once completed, the new airport would help ease congestion at the well-known Murtala Muhammed Airport.
In October 2022, the Federal Government gave the green light for the construction of Lekki International Airport in the Lekki-Epe region of Lagos State, with a commitment to start the project in 2023.
Former Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika handed over the approval for the new airport to Sanwo-Olu during the 2022 Lagos Economic Summit in the state.
Before the commissioning of Murtala Muhammed Airport Two (MMA2) in Lagos on April 7, 2007, the Federal Government had entered into an agreement with Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, the private company managing the terminal, that no new airport terminal would be built in the state as long as the concession agreement for MMA2 remained in effect.
The Federal Government signed a 36-year contract with Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited for the rebuilding of the previously damaged terminal, following a design-build-operate-transfer model.
However, the terminal operators have only managed the facility for 17 years so far.
The Lagos State government, led by Babatunde Fashola, introduced the concept of a new airport in 2009 through a Public-Private Partnership initiative.
In 2011, as part of a competitive bidding process for the airport’s construction, the government, through its consultants, issued a call for pre-qualification applications.
A total of 33 local and international companies expressed interest in the ambitious project, but delays were caused by opposition from landowners and challenges in securing funding.
In 2011, a report from local newspapers, which quoted the then Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Adeniyi Oyemade, stated that approximately N102 billion had been allocated for the project.
However, after Fashola left office in 2015, there was little mention of the project until Sanwo-Olu revived it with approval from the Federal Government.
Sanwo-Olu mentioned that the new airport would be constructed alongside the Lekki-Epe Expressway and would cover 3,500 hectares of land in the area.
Attempts to get a statement from Bi-Courtney on the issue have been unsuccessful.
A senior staff member, who requested anonymity, told our correspondent that the company had no comment on the matter at the time this report was filed.
Ajoke Yinka-Olawuyi, the company’s Head of Corporate Communications, stated that she could not provide any comment on the situation.
“I cannot comment on that matter for now,” Olawuyi said to our correspondent.
The State’s Commissioner for Information, Gbenga Omotoso, declined to respond to the situation, not addressing text inquiries or calls from our reporter.
In the meantime, Olumide Ohunayo, Director of Research at Zenith Travel Limited, expressed that the state requires another airport.
“Lagos state is the biggest commercial city in Nigeria with a population of about 20 million and a high group in the middle class. You can be sure that a second airport is a necessity and of importance to further expand the economy of the state.”
Nuhu Adam, the Managing Partner of TMSS Logistics, a company specializing in aviation logistics consulting and services, described the state government’s announcement as a positive move and a major turning point for the state.
He said, “The announcement by the Lagos State Government is a good development and a game changer. The airport is being promoted within the concept of a free-trade zone. It is definitely going to be a game changer, given the strategic location of Lagos as an aviation hub in West Africa.
“However, the promoter should be mindful of the existing agreement between the current operator of a terminal and the Federal Government. I see this as an encumbrance if the legal hurdle is not properly ironed out.
“It won’t be in the interest of who-be investors, given the last experience of Virgin Nigeria Vs Federal Government on the issue of operation of domestic flights from international terminals.”
The PUNCH
