Mota-Engil Nigeria, the contractor selected to build the proposed Benin Port, has acquired another set of equipment ahead of the commencement of the port project.
The equipment includes Sleeper’s Factory, Rail Route Tyre Excavators, Drillers, Rails, Trailers, Heavy Duty Dumpers, Bulldozers and Motor Graders and according to the construction firm, it is part of its $200 million investment in Nigeria.
Nuno Colaço, logistics manager of the company, who led a team to inspect the new equipment at the PTML terminal in Lagos, said the firm now boasts of a modern fleet of equipment in the construction industry that will be deployed to its ever-growing number of projects to ensure timely and quality delivery.
Colaço said the latest acquisition coincides with Mota-Engil’s emergence as the preferred bidder for the Benin Port Project, which has been described as the most ambitious legacy project of Godwin Obaseki, governor of Edo State.
Greg Ogbeifun, chairman of the Benin Port Project, confirmed at the weekend that the preferred bidder, Mota Engil Nigeria, emerged after a rigorous evaluation exercise conducted on the bids received in response to the Request for Proposals, from three pre-qualified bidders.
Reacting to the emergence of Mota-Engil as the port developer, Governor Obaseki said it was a delight that the project has finally kicked off to serve as a launch pad for the expansion of Edo’s $11.8 billion economy.
Obaseki said the port would catalyse the growth of the agriculture, real estate, manufacturing, food processing, automotive, power, retail and extractive sectors.
The Benin Port is designed to be a unique agro-based port in Nigeria that encompasses a complete smart Port Community Complex for industrial processing and export of agricultural produce and other goods, with independent, clean and renewable energy installations.
The container terminal of the port will be built to have 300,000 twenty-foot Equivalent Unit (TEU) including a multipurpose RoRo facilities to enable direct importation of vehicles for the thriving automobile industry in Edo State, among other commercial activities that would spring from the port operations.
