Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Ikanade Agba, is full of praises for President Muhammadu Buhari for approving the reconstruction of the three sections of the Benin-Sapele-Warri Road under the Federal Government Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).

The new reconstruction contracts were approved on Wednesday during the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by the president.

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The sections of the road that have been awarded for reconstruction are Section 1 made up of the 28.275 kilometre-long Benin-Imasabor in favour of Messrs Levant Construction Company Limited in the sum of N98,916,451,227.28 inclusive of 7.5 percent VAT with a 24-month completion period; Section II made up of 38.525 kilometre-long Imasabor-Ibada Elume in favour of Messrs GELD Construction Company Limited/Triata Nig. Ltd (JV) in the sum of N127,648,926,047.37 inclusive of 7.5 percent VAT with a 36-month completion period; and Section III made up of 23.2 kilometre-long Ibada Elume-Warri in favour of Messrs SKECC Nigeria Limited in the sum of N89,142,998,919.59 inclusive of 7.5 percent VAT with a 42-month completion period.

Agba explained that these three contracts were new unlike the Benin-Okene Road contracts which had existed for many years, but which funding was approved under the Tax Credit Programme in January, this year, by the president at a FEC meeting.

He, however, noted that the contractors handling the Benin-Okene Road had yet to mobilise to sites due to inflationary trend that had affected the original costs of the project, and had requested for augmentation of the rates adding that “this is now undergoing augmentation by the Ministry of Works.”