FG Awards $1.85 Billion Kano Light Rail Contract To Chinese Firm

China is set to build light rail system in Kano. The rail project signed is said to be valued at $1.85billion, while construction work will take two stages

On Monday, August 29, a report came on how a Chinese company stated that its directors had gotten a provisional letter of award from the Nigerian government on constructing a light rail system valued at $1.851billion. TheCable learnt that rail will have a full stretch of 74.3 kilometres and is expected to travel at a speed of 100 kilometres per hour. Leadership reported the same likewise.

“Project contract amount of approximately $ 1.851 billion, equivalent to approximately RMB 120.3 Billion, accounting for 2% of the Company’s 2015 revenue, under the China Accounting Standards,” the company’s announcement reads

The country is expending the highest money in capital projects, constructing infrastructure, and changing the over 50-year-old rail lines across the nation. More than N1 trillion was allocated for capital expenditure in the 2016 appropriation act. Therefore, the country is expected to spend the highest amount of money in capex since its independence.
The China Railway Construction Corporation stated that it has agreed to a $1.851 billion light rail system project to be built in Kano, Northwest Nigeria. On Monday, August 29, the company made known the construction plans to journalists. It stated that it has collected provisional letter of award from the federal government to commence the construction work.

Both Leadership and TheCable gathered that the receipt of the project will last for three weeks from the day the contact is awarded; thereafter “uncertainties” will take over. The company stated: “In context, 100 kilometres per hour is as fast as moving from Lagos to Ibadan in 72 minutes.”

The Chinese company informed that the initial stage of the project work is scheduled to last two years, while the second stage of the four-line rail is expected to be for another two years. Another rail system the federal government invested in is the Abuja-Kaduna rail.

The railway route has already been yielding dividend; it recorded N5 million income within the first two weeks of operation.

Source: naij.com