Water supply, electricity delay completion of airport terminal

The China Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CCECC) handling the new terminal building at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, says the project is 80 per cent close to completion.

The Project Manager, Mr Kevin Lee, disclosed this to the members of the Senate and House of Representatives Joint Committee on Aviation during their oversight visit to the airport on Tuesday, October 31, 2017.

Lee said the project would be completed before February 2018 but stated that the building might not be put to use immediately until the power and water supply capacity to the airport were increased.

He explained that the existing power and water capacity in the airport could not service the new terminal.

"The project is 80 per cent complete and we hope that it will be put to use before the end of next year.

"I have told the National Assembly members that the water and power capacity needs to be upgraded. They also need to relocate the control tower and power stations.

"To commission this building, about 8MVA capacity power is needed and right now, the existing power cannot carry it and we cannot go ahead to test some of the things installed because of the low capacity of power.

"All these things needed have been done but we can't Commission without power.

"Terminal building would be completed by the end of February 2018, but because there is no power, we can't commission it.

"Equipment needed for finishing is on site and it would be completed soon but if the power and water is provided, the building would be commissioned by the end of next year," he said.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Sen. Adamu Aleiro, while expressing satisfaction with the level of work done, said the senate would give the needed support to ensure its timely completion.

Aleiro said the Federal Ministry of Transportation had already taken steps to address the issue of power and water deficiencies in the project.

According to him, they are doing something about it and once they bring it to the notice of the legislature, we will do the needful and give them necessary support because definitely we need this building to be put to use immediately after completion.

"So, there is no point having this building without water and electricity, the building won't function.

"The existing power and water supply is not adequate enough to accommodate this building, so we need to expand the water and electricity supply. The building will be completed and inaugurated before the end of next year."

On the second runway, Aleiro said that Abuja airport was the only international airport in Nigeria that had no second runway.

He further said that with the passenger inflow and number of flights coming into Abuja, the airport needed a second runway, saying the National Assembly had approved the project in the 2017 budget.

According to him, the ministry is working to ensure that the procurement and award of contract is done before the end of this year and if it is awarded, there would be enough funding for next year.

He pledged that the senate would continue to support all aviation agencies to be able to deliver on their mandates effectively.

The Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Aviation, Mrs Nkiruka Oynejeocha, also commended the level of work done on the terminal building.

Onyejeocha also said that the airport needed a second runway to complement the new terminal and the increasing traffic.