The hard journey for the delivery of the intractable Bodo-Bonny Expressway have continued to face delays until September 15, 2017, when NLNG summoned the boldness to seal a tripartite agreement in Abuja with the Federal Government and Julius Berger Nigeria Limited to fund the construction of the Bodo-Bonny road at an initial cost of N120.6 billion.
The road, according to available documents, is envisaged to help address the twin challenges of poverty and unemployment as well as improve the lives of people of the region, especially those from Bonny, Ogoni, Okrika, Eleme, Andoni, and other communities in the Niger Delta.
Business Hilights recalls that the agreement was signed by Tony Attah, the then NLNG’s managing director and chief executive officer, and Fashola, minister of power, works and housing at the time, on behalf of the Federal Government, while Wolfgang Goesh signed on behalf of Julius Berger.
In his remarks, Attah averred that “This for Nigeria LNG is part of our effort to contribute to the advancement of the Niger Delta. More importantly for us as a company, our contribution to the project will lead to the accomplishment of the dream of connecting Bonny Island to the rest of Rivers State by road and not only by sea.
“Our greater joy is that the road will ease the plight of people of Bonny Island, the community that has amicably hosted the NLNG Plant and operations for so long. Over the years, our love for our host community had compelled us to open up our strictly business sea vessels to accommodate members of the community, and their visitors, and save them from the hazards of the sea to the best of our ability.
“If you have kept track of our business principles and all our CSR activities, you will by now be convinced that we have kept our promise to help build a better Nigeria and especially our host communities in the Niger Delta region.”
Fashola commended NLNG, saying: “NLNG has stepped up as a unique example of the constructive role the private sector can play in national development. This project represents a defining moment in the government’s determination to strengthen and improve the quality of life in the Niger Delta which holds so much of the country’s resources.”
NLNG is a joint venture incorporated in 1989 to produce liquefied natural gas (LNG) and natural gas liquids for export, and is owned by four shareholders: the Federal Government of Nigeria, represented by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (49 percent), Shell Gas BV, SGBV, (25.6 percent), Total Gaz Electricite Holdings France (15 percent), and Eni International (10.4 percent).
The NLNG plant at Bonny Island has six processing units (trains) with total processing capacity of 22 million tonnes a year of LNG and up to 5 million tonnes of natural gas liquids (LPG and condensate). It accounts for approximately 7 percent of the world’s total LNG supply.
