LFZDC to Spend $250m on Sand Filling

• LFZDC to Spend $250m on Sand Filling

The Lekki Free Zone Development Company has commenced sand filling on 50 hectares of land, adding that the work will cost $250m.

The company said it was equally working on office complex that would have 60,000 spaces.

The Managing Director of the company, Mr. Ding Yonghua, disclosed this during an oversight visit by the Senate Committee on Trade and Investment on Friday.

“I believe by the end of the year, the structure will be completed,” he said.

He listed other projects to be completed by the company in 2017 to include water treatment plant, a single mooring system, N-4 road, and a 4-star hotel, adding that 116 companies had been registered to operate in the zone out of which only 46 companies had begun operation.

The Chairman of the committee, Senator Fatimat Rasaki, representing Ekiti Central Senatorial District, advised the management of the company to activate deliberate business policies requiring companies operating in the zone to source their raw materials locally where available.

She observed that with virtually every material input sought abroad by companies operating in the free trade zone, Nigeria had very little to gain and as such, the impact and purpose of the zone might be defeated.

The Lekki Free Zone established by a tripartite agreement involving a Chinese consortium, the Federal Government and the Lagos State Government now has 46 companies already operating in the trade zone with another 70 companies registered to begin operation before the end of 2017.

Senator Rasaki, who was in company with two other members, Senator Robert Boroffice of Ondo North and Yusuf Yusuf, representing Taraba Central, also sought to have officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency at the zone.

Yonghua sought the Federal Government’s support in the areas of access road and offshore banking policy.

He stressed that construction of wider access road to the zone was critical as the existing dual carriage was too small to contain traffic to the zone when most of the companies would start operation.

He said, “It now time for the Federal Government to support the zone with the construction of external roads as planned. As we know, the Apapa Port, for instance, has six lanes, yet the roads are congested. Here, we have just a dual carriage way.”