The Federal Government has directed Julius Berger Nigeria Plc to expedite the completion of the 82-km Section II of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano dual carriageway and the construction of the Bodo-Bonny Road, which includes bridges across the Opobo Channel (Route 430) in Rivers State.
This directive comes after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the re-scoping and downward review of the contract for the rehabilitation of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano dual carriageway, along with the revised estimated total cost for the Bodo-Bonny Road project, amounting to N820.87 billion.
Of the N740 billion allocated for the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano dual carriageway, the government has already paid N391 billion, leaving approximately N340 billion outstanding.
The government has set a 14-month deadline for the contractor to complete the project, warning that it will not accept any further increases to the revised contract.
It also cautioned that it would not hesitate to terminate either contract, with the approval of President Bola Tinubu, if the terms are not acceptable to the construction company.
Minister of Works, David Umahi, emphasized that the government cannot remain in endless negotiations with the contractor and urged the company to demonstrate patriotism in its partnership with the government.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Uchenna Orji, Minister of Works David Umahi, during a meeting on October 3, 2024, with Julius Berger Nigeria Plc executives, Benjamin Bott (Executive Director, Projects) and Omonigho Brown (Head of Contract Management), stressed the need for contractors working on Federal Government projects to demonstrate corporate nationalism in price negotiations, given Nigeria’s current economic challenges.
Umahi noted that at its September 23, 2024, meeting, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the re-scoping and downward review of the contract for the rehabilitation of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano dual carriageway (contract No. 6350) and the revised total cost for the construction of the Bodo-Bonny road with bridges across the Opobo Channel, Route 430, in Rivers State (contract No. 6247).
The total contract sums were N740.8 billion and N80.1 billion, respectively.
He said: “Then we have section II, which is 82 kilometers by two, which is the section that JBN Plc is working on.
“And so, if you check what FEC approved on 23rd of September, FEC had approved that the total contract sum within the scope of Berger would be N740 billion, which means that if you remove N391 billion paid already, you now have about N340 billion remaining, which is the scope of their work for the 164 kilometers.”
He urged the contractor to mobilize in the four sections of the Abuja-Zaria-Kaduna-Kano project to finish the job within 14 months.
Noting that the prices given on the said projects were the best in view of the economic reality of the time, the Minister said, “So we are appealing to you not to try to increase the contract sum, because it will not be possible.
“And we have written to the President to approve that if JBN Plc does not accept the N740 billion, we will terminate the contract.
“We have terminated some of their jobs because we’ve been negotiating sometimes 12 months, 13 months.
“There must be an end to negotiation. We are ready to pay you (JBN Plc) even fresh mobilisation, just to underscore the interest of the President on this project. So we are appealing and begging you that by Monday, you should be able to sign the addendum to the contract.”
The Minister stressed the importance of JBN Plc mobilizing at multiple locations across the two projects to ensure their completion within the scheduled period, saying, “On Bodo-Bonny project, we don’t think we have any issue. We’ve agreed on the N280 billion, which is the new contract sum that is fixed, and then for a 12- month completion period; that is an additional 12 months.
“So we want you to mobilize in a minimum of three locations. So that within these 12 months, we’ll be able to finish the job.”In the letter to NLNG, we have to also propose 30% advance payment, so that they will be able to have enough funds to mitigate inflation and any form of variation.”
Orji stated that the meeting concluded with the formal handover of the Letters of Award for the revised project contract sums to Julius Berger (Plc), on the terms “That the contract is fixed, firm, non-transferable, and will be automatically terminated by the expiration of its term unless formally reviewed by the Ministry”.
