Get Guardian on GoogleThe Federal Government has signed a 30-year concession agreement with Port Harcourt Airport Company Limited for the management and development of the Port Harcourt International Airport.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, signed the agreement yesterday in Abuja after a closed-door meeting with aviation labour unions to agree on modalities for the concession.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Keyamo said the concession was part of the Federal Government’s policy of encouraging private sector participation in the development and management of some airports across the country.
He said the decision was informed by the financial challenges facing some airports, noting that profits generated from major airports were often used to subsidise the operations of less profitable ones.
According to him, the government lacks sufficient resources to expand airport facilities and develop their non-aeronautical revenue potential, making private sector investment necessary.
“Some of our airports are being run at a loss. We make so much money from some of our primary airports, and most of those profits are ploughed into running other airports that are operating at a loss,” he said.
The minister said the concession process, which had received the approval of President Bola Tinubu and the Federal Executive Council, was not a recent decision but one that successive administrations had attempted to implement.
He disclosed that the government had held several months of negotiations with aviation labour unions to secure their support and address concerns about workers’ welfare.
Keyamo said President Tinubu had directed that no worker should lose his or her job as a result of the concession, adding that existing conditions of service would be maintained.
He said the agreement with the unions was similar to the arrangement reached during the concession of the Enugu Airport.
The minister added that the concessionaire had undergone a rigorous assessment by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), which examined its financial capacity, experience and ability to manage the airport to international standards.
He expressed confidence that the company had the technical and financial capacity to improve airport facilities, enhance passenger experience and expand operations.
Keyamo also said Port Harcourt and Enugu airports initially attracted little interest from investors when the government opened the airports for concession, unlike Lagos, Kano and Abuja airports.
He attributed the eventual interest in the two airports to the investment policies of the Tinubu administration.
In his remarks, a representative of the concessionaire Mr Eyo Asuquo said the process had been lengthy and rigorous, involving engagements within Nigeria and abroad to demonstrate the company’s capacity and capability.
He assured Nigerians that the company would introduce international standards in airport management and infrastructure development.
The representative also pledged that the concession would not result in job losses, but would create additional employment opportunities as the airport develops into an airport city.
Asuquo said the company’s vision was to transform Port Harcourt International Airport into a regional hub for the Gulf of Guinea, with improved connectivity to destinations across Africa, including Cape Town, South Africa.
