Image: Petar Milošević / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Marine and Blue Economy Minister Adegboyega Oyetola said on 27 September that the Federal Government has approved modernisation of four ports outside Lagos, adding to the Apapa and Tin Can Island programme, alongside six planned deep seaports.
The Federal Government has approved the modernisation of the Onne, Rivers, Delta and Calabar ports, extending a programme that previously covered only the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports in Lagos, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy Adegboyega Oyetola announced on his official X account on Sunday 27 September 2026, Nairametrics reported the same day. BusinessDay and The Guardian also reported the approval.
What was announced
According to BusinessDay, Oyetola said extending the programme to ports outside Lagos would complement the investment in Apapa and Tin Can Island and help reduce the concentration of cargo traffic around Lagos. The stated aims are better cargo handling, shorter vessel turnaround times and stronger regional connectivity. Nairametrics reported that six deep seaport projects are also planned: Ibom (Akwa Ibom), Bakassi (Cross River), Agge (Bayelsa), Gateway (Ogun), Ondo (Ondo) and Bonny (Rivers).
None of the reports identified the approving body, the cost, the financing structure, contractors or concessionaires, or timelines for the four ports.
What the minister said earlier
ThisDay reported on 26 September that, at a Transport Industry Summit in Lagos on 25 September, Oyetola (represented by an official of the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency) described the modernisation as the most ambitious in more than 50 years, following approval by President Bola Tinubu. The works described include quay wall reconstruction, channel deepening, replacement of old cargo-handling equipment and digitalisation of terminal and gate operations. The same report referred to the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency Act 2026 as the basis for a permanent regulatory framework for the sector.
Why it matters
Where terminals at these ports are run by private operators under concession or lease agreements, major rehabilitation raises contractual questions: who pays for quay walls and dredging, how capital works are reflected in lease terms and tariffs, and whether upgrades are tied to concession extensions or renegotiation. Terminal operators and their lenders should review their concession agreements for provisions on landlord infrastructure obligations, compensation for disruption during works and rights to adjust throughput guarantees.
For shippers, logistics companies and manufacturers in the South-South and South-East, better capacity at Onne, Warri and Calabar could change routing decisions that currently favour Lagos. The six deep seaport projects are at different stages and will each need their own procurement, PPP approvals and financing. Investors should treat the announcement as a statement of policy until the approvals, budgets and procurement documents are published, and watch how the new economic regulator applies tariff and access rules to the upgraded terminals.
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