The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) has approved the Outline Business Case (OBC) for Nigeria’s first bullet train, a $60 billion high-speed rail project to be funded by China Liancai Petroleum Investment Holdings.
The announcement was made following a meeting in Abuja on Tuesday attended by senior government officials, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, the Minister of Transportation, Said Alkali, and the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ekperike Ekpo, where the agreement with the Chinese investors was discussed.
The ICRC’s approval allows the project, led by Nigerian company Desadel Consortium, to advance toward preparing a Full Business Case for submission to the Federal Executive Council.
Desadel’s Chief Executive Officer, Solomon Uko, said the project had been in development for about 10 years but had not progressed beyond the planning stage until recent months. He noted that under the current administration, nearly 90% of the necessary approvals have now been granted, and the investment from China has been formally confirmed with proof-of-funds documents presented during the meeting.
“The high-speed rail bullet train project that we started 10 years ago; it is this administration that has given us almost 90 percent of approvals. Today, with our partners, China’s Liancai Corporation, we have just presented official proof of funds for the project,” Uko stated.
He added, “The federal government of Nigeria, through the ICRC, approved the Outline Business Case, and the next step now was for us to submit the proof of funds to the government, which we have just done.”
More insights
George Akume said the investment aligns with the government’s broader infrastructure agenda but noted that the submitted documents would be subjected to verification to confirm the availability of funds.
He emphasized that while the government does not doubt the investors, reviewing the documents is a standard procedure to establish the real amount of money available.
- Minister of State for Petroleum, Ekperike Ekpo, added that Nigeria has sufficient gas resources to meet the project’s energy requirements, highlighting the country’s readiness to support high-speed rail operations.
- Minister of Transportation, Alkali, confirmed that his ministry had submitted the OBC to the ICRC and would now work on completing the Full Business Case.
- ICRC Director General, Oseodion Ewalefoh, said the commission will review and validate all submissions to ensure the project meets regulatory requirements before proceeding.
The first phase of the bullet train is expected to connect four states, including the Federal Capital Territory, with a projected completion timeline of 36 months once construction begins.
Audio project…smh
Nobody is going to put $60b into Nigeria. PERIOD! Even arguably the most financially viable toll-road project, the proposed Fourth Mainland Bridge in Lagos, is struggling to raise a ‘mere’ $2 billion.