Highway construction to be completed for South East Nigeria

Further financing will be required to complete construction work for Nigeria’s vital East-West highway project. Work is being carried out on sections of the highway between Warri and Port Harcourt and from Eket to Ikot Akan and Atan Ikpe. The former stretch is being handled by Setraco Nigeria, while the latter is being handled by Reynolds Construction Company. However a further US$277.4 million will be required to fund the work, which involves widening the highway so that it features two lanes in either dir
June 11, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
Further financing will be required to complete construction work for Nigeria’s vital East-West highway project. Work is being carried out on sections of the highway between Warri and Port Harcourt and from Eket to Ikot Akan and Atan Ikpe. The former stretch is being handled by Setraco Nigeria, while the latter is being handled by Reynolds Construction Company. However a further US$277.4 million will be required to fund the work, which involves widening the highway so that it features two lanes in either direction. In all the East-West highway runs 657km between Warri and Calabar and was originally expected to cost $2 billion. Passing through the Niger Delta area, the route crosses numerous rivers and creeks and will feature two larger box girder type bridges measuring 850m and 700m, as well as numerous smaller bridges.


The section of the highway between Ikot Akan and Port Harcourt passes Bonny Island, where many of the oil facilities are located, although the route runs inland. Transport between the island and Port Harcourt depends largely on water traffic, with helicopters also being used extensively for senior personnel. A bridge to Bonny Island has been proposed in the past, but has never managed to move ahead to actual construction.

It remains to be explained as to why the south east of Nigeria, the centre of the oil industry on which the country’s GDP has relied on for the last few decades, has suffered so badly in terms of road development. Better roads to and from the oil producing areas would help ensure the industry is fully competitive.

The Niger River Delta and surrounding areas have suffered from instability over the years, likely fuelled by resentment at the Nigerian Federal Government’s inability to provide adequate infrastructure over successive administrations, despite the region’s importance to the country’s GDP. However the present Nigerian Federal Government has recognised the need for infrastructure development, with the East-West highway being seen as a priority.

Finance & Funding

Related Content

  • Highly relevant: Denmark’s asset management for bridges
    July 12, 2019
    A well-maintained road bridge network is vital to Denmark’s economy. David Arminas caught up with Niels Pedersen, head of bridges at the Danish Road Directorate Denmark, being a country mainly of islands, relies on its bridges and tunnels to help unify the nation culturally. It also means that they are vastly more important to the economic well-being of the nation than in most other states. The World Bank has classified Denmark as a high-income economy. In 2017 it ranked 16th globally in terms of gros
    Read More
  • Ethiopia-Somalia road project underway
    March 11, 2019
    Work is now starting on the 234km road that will connect the Ethiopian town of Togochale with Berbera Port in neighbouring Somalia. The project is being carried out in three phases and will cost US$400 million in all, with this first 72km section costing some $90 million. The project is of key importance to both countries, as well as for East Africa’s economy as a whole. Landlocked Ethiopia’s economy has been growing healthily in recent years but has been constrained by a lack of access to a port. Meanwhile
    Read More
  • Chinese highway project under construction
    February 9, 2017
    China’s infrastructure expansion programme is in the process of transforming the country. Meanwhile its construction market is the largest in the world, comprising around 25% of the country’s US$11 trillion economy. However, slowing domestic growth in recent years has encouraged the Chinese Government to invest in key infrastructure projects in a bid to improve the country’s transport connections.
    Read More
  • Formwork solutions for bridge maintenance and repair
    January 6, 2015
    An array of innovative formwork solutions have helped in the repair and construction of key bridge links - Mike Woof writes Formwork producers are continually developing novel solutions for bridge maintenance and construction applications. Several key structures have benefited from the novel use of formwork systems, with suppliers such as Doka, PERI, Pilosio and RMD all working on important structures in recent times. In Estonia, construction work is underway on the bypass around Tartu, the country’s
    Read More

Highlighted Content