The project ends decades search for investors, boosts Nigeria’s blue economy

By Prince Adeyemi Shonibare

Nigeria’s maritime sector is set for a major transformation following a landmark agreement involving the world’s largest container shipping company, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), which has secured a 45-year concession to build, manage and operate a modern container terminal at Snake Island Port in Lagos.

The project, to be developed in partnership with Nigerdock, marks one of the most significant private sector investments in Nigeria’s port infrastructure in recent decades and is expected to strengthen the country’s role as a major maritime gateway in West and Central Africa.

For Nigeria, the agreement brings to close decades of efforts to attract large-scale investors to develop Snake Island Port, a strategically located maritime asset in Lagos.

Long-standing concession history
Snake Island’s maritime facilities date back several decades. In 1992, the Federal Government granted a 99-year concession for the island’s port and industrial facilities to Nigerdock, a major maritime engineering and logistics company.
Nigerdock was later privatised and is currently operated by the Jagal Group owned by Nigerian industrialist Maher Jarmakani.

Over the years, the Island Container Terminal fell into disrepair, requiring major rehabilitation and modernization to meet modern global shipping standards.

The new partnership with MSC is expected to transform the port into a state-of-the-art container handling facility capable of attracting larger vessels and increasing Nigeria’s cargo throughput capacity.
Buhari administration approved the project.

The investment framework for the Snake Island development was approved in May 2023 by the Federal Executive Council under then President Muhammadu Buhari.
The approval authorised total private investment of approximately $974.1 million for the project under a Public-Private Partnership structure, including the 45-year concession period.

At the same time, the Federal Government also approved two other major maritime infrastructure projects:
• Development of the Ondo Multipurpose Port in Ilaje, Ondo State, with $1.48 billion in private investment and a 50-year concession.
• Expansion and development of the Burutu Sea Port in Delta State, involving $1.2 billion in private investment and a 40-year concession.
These projects form part of Nigeria’s broader effort to develop its blue economy and expand maritime trade capacity.

Construction partners
Engineering and construction of the Snake Island container terminal will be handled by:
• ITB Nigeria Limited
• DEME Group
ITB Nigeria Limited is part of the Chagoury Group and owned by the Chagoury family, while DEME Group is a globally recognised Belgian marine engineering and dredging company with extensive experience in port construction.

MSC profile
Founded in 1970 by Italian shipping entrepreneur Gianluigi Aponte and his wife Rafaela Aponte-Diamant, MSC has grown from a single cargo vessel into the largest container shipping company in the world.
Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the company operates in more than 155 countries and serves over 500 ports worldwide, with a fleet of roughly 900 container ships and over 200,000 employees globally.

The MSC Group also operates major logistics and maritime businesses including inland logistics through Medlog, cruise tourism through MSC Cruises, and port terminal operations across several continents.

According to Forbes, the estimated net worth of MSC founder Gianluigi Aponte is about $43.9 billion as of February 2026, placing him among the world’s richest shipping magnates. The company remains privately owned by the Aponte family, with both founders holding equal ownership stakes.
Management comments
Speaking on the development, MSC Group President Diego Aponte said the company is committed to strengthening its operations in Nigeria and across Africa.

“We are proud to expand our presence in Nigeria through this important infrastructure project. The Snake Island terminal will enhance service delivery and improve port efficiency for our customers and partners in the region,”

Chief Executive Officer of Nigerdock, Maher Jarmakani, described the agreement as a major milestone for the Nigerian maritime sector.

“We are delighted to partner with MSC in developing a world-class container terminal that will enhance Nigeria’s logistics capabilities and support economic growth,” he said.

Economic impact
Industry analysts say the project could significantly strengthen Nigeria’s maritime economy by expanding cargo handling capacity, reducing congestion at Lagos ports and attracting additional international shipping traffic.

The development is also expected to create thousands of direct and indirect jobs across maritime operations, logistics, transport services and port-related commercial activities.

Infrastructure expansion
Beyond the port development, plans are also underway for Nigeria’s first underwater tunnel, linking Ahmadu Bello Way in Victoria Island through Snake Island and connecting the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway with the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway corridor through Badagry.

The tunnel project is expected to significantly improve freight movement and road connectivity between Lagos ports and national transport networks.

Strategic milestone
With the entry of MSC into the Snake Island development, industry observers say Nigeria is taking a significant step toward modernizing its maritime infrastructure and positioning itself as a regional hub for global shipping and trade.

For a project that has waited for decades for major international investors, the Snake Island concession represents a turning point in Nigeria’s port development strategy and a strong signal of global confidence in the country’s maritime future.

By Prince Adeyemi Shonibare

Energy experts in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector have defended the pricing structure of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, accusing some fuel markers of attempting to blackmail the refinery and mislead the public over the recent increase in petrol prices.

The experts said reports suggesting that the refinery’s latest adjustment is solely responsible for the recent hike in fuel prices were misleading, noting that importers are also bringing in petrol at almost a N1,000 per litre, while the refinery’s coastal price is N948 and the gantry or ex-depot price stands at N995 per litre.

They stressed that public comparisons fail to consider the differences in pricing structures and supply channels.

According to the experts, N948 per litre represents the coastal delivery price, which refers to petroleum products transported by marine vessels or barges from the refinery to depots along the coastline. On the other hand, N995 per litre represents the gantry or ex-depot price, which is the rate paid by marketers who load petrol directly from the refinery into tanker trucks at the loading gantry for onward distribution across the country.

The experts explained that the two figures should not be interpreted as conflicting prices but rather as different logistics arrangements within the petroleum distribution chain.

Speaking with our correspondent on Sunday, energy expert David Okon said the pricing adjustments were inevitable given prevailing market conditions.

According to him, Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals operates in a deregulated market and procures crude at international prices, which have risen sharply due to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

“The refinery is already absorbing part of the cost to cushion the impact of the crisis on Nigerians. We can see what is happening in other parts of the world where shortages and scarcity are being reported despite higher prices, yet the Dangote Refinery has continued to guarantee domestic supply,” he said.

Okon explained that when the refinery previously sold petrol at N774 per litre, crude oil was landing at about $68 per barrel. However, with crude now arriving at roughly $95 per barrel, the cost difference of about $27 per barrel translates to nearly N40,000 per barrel when converted to Naira.

“You cannot expect a refinery to continue selling at the old rate under those circumstances,” he added.

“If imported products were truly cheaper, importers would still be selling at the previous prices.”

He warned that without local refining capacity, Nigeria could have faced severe fuel shortages, long queues at filling stations and a resurgence of black market sales.

“Without the Dangote Refinery, many filling stations would likely shut down, queues would return across the country and black market traders would exploit the situation, hawking four litres keg at N20,000 or more. The refinery has effectively prevented that scenario,” he said.

Another analyst, Mohammed Ibrahim, also faulted narratives circulating in some quarters suggesting that the refinery’s pricing adjustment was responsible for worsening economic hardship in the country.

Accusing some importers of attempting to manipulate public perception, he said, “What we are seeing is nothing but deliberate blackmail by some fuel importers who feel threatened by local refining.

“They are twisting the pricing structure to mislead Nigerians and create unnecessary panic in the market.

“By exaggerating the refinery’s gantry price and ignoring the comparable costs of imported fuel, they are trying to make it appear as though Dangote Refinery is the cause of rising prices and economic hardship. This is a calculated attempt to protect their import businesses and undermine local refining, which is meant to reduce our dependence on imported petrol.”

Ibrahim added that such narratives were aimed at portraying the refinery as the reason Nigerians were struggling with higher petrol prices.

He stressed that petrol pricing in Nigeria is largely influenced by global crude oil prices, exchange rate fluctuations, and distribution logistics, noting that these factors affect both locally refined and imported fuel in the country’s deregulated market.

Afolabi Olowookere, Managing Director and Chief Economist at Analysts’ Data Services and Resources (ADSR) Limited, explained that although Nigerians expect refined products from the refinery to be significantly cheaper, prevailing market realities such as global crude oil prices, the cost of crude supply and refining margins make substantial price reductions unlikely in the short term.

“Therefore, improving domestic crude allocation to the refinery would strengthen supply stability and enhance the long term benefits of local refining for the economy,” Olowookere noted.

Recent conflicts in the Middle East and disruptions along key shipping lanes have tightened global oil supply, pushing crude prices past $90 per barrel, a development that directly raises the cost of both imported and locally refined petrol in Nigeria.

The unrest has pushed up fuel costs and transportation in several countries, including Ghana, the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa, India, Canada, Brazil, Germany, France, and Japan, as rising crude prices increase the cost of refining, distribution, and logistics globally.