Vessel
The event of September 24, 2026 in Paris, France when the Ogun State Government and DP World entered into a Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) was a different ball game.
Unlike the March 2026 signing of a £746 million export finance agreement to fund the rehabilitation and modernization of the Lagos ports of Apapa and Tin Can Island, the event of September 24, 2026 in Paris, France when the Ogun State Government and DP World entered into a Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) was a different ball game. While the former was a federal government initiative that involved the procurement of a huge loan for the modernization of Lagos ports which handle up to 70 percent of Nigeria’s cargo traffic, the Gateway project is the product of the vision and drive of the Ogun State Government.
Predictably, it attracted comments bordering on the perception that while the Lagos axis already have a glut of port facilities, another one is coming for nearby Ogun where the site for the proposed Gateway Deepsea Port is barely 60 kilometers away from Lagos. It is being positioned as one that will take pressure away from Lagos ports. But that could also be its Achilles heel. Apart from the four ports in the former national capital, Lekki Deepsea Port has already taken off with another Deepsea port proposed for nearby Badagry.
In addition, Nigerdock which became famous as Nigeria’s prime shipbuilding and repair facility is also joining the Deepsea port party. Nigerdock is expanding its facility on Snake Island, Lagos, into a major commercial deep-water port through a partnership with the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC). The project is expected to come on stream in 2028.
So, what is the unique selling point for the proposed Gateway Deepsea Port? In truth, not much. If it is eventually built with $7 billion being the cost estimate, it may become a colossal white elephant.
The proposed Gateway Deep Sea Port in Ogun State, could face significant commercial, technical, environmental and strategic challenges. However, the fact that a deep-sea port is expensive or faces competition does not automatically make it unviable. The central question is whether it can attract enough cargo, generate sufficient revenue and compete effectively with existing ports to justify its enormous construction and operating costs.
The strongest case against the project is that Ogun State’s proximity to Lagos and the existing Lekki Deep Sea Port could create substantial duplication, while the proposed port would still need to overcome the costs of marine access, inland transportation, infrastructure and financing.
The key risk is that construction costs, financing charges and recurring maintenance expenses may exceed the revenue generated by cargo handling. A port needs predictable volumes of imports, exports and possibly transshipment traffic. Ogun’s manufacturing base offers an opportunity, but existing manufacturers must actually choose the port, and new industries must materialise at a sufficient scale.
The enormous challenges on the path of the proposed Gateway facility represent a huge opportunity for other coastal locations in Delta and Akwa Ibom states. For about 20 years, Akwa Ibom State has been battling with the concept of a Deepsea port. Its initial location was Ibaka in Mbo Local Government Area as conceptualised by Victor Attah, the state’s first fourth republic Governor. However, politics was brought to erode the idea and Udom Emmanuel later moved it to Ibeno. The project was shifted due to communal petitions and pushback from the local Oron people (owners of the Ibaka land), combined with initial investor concerns regarding a hostile local environment.
Ibom Deep Seaport and Delta proposals are envisaged to be deep drafts to accommodate ultra-large container vessels (handling over 13,000 containers in a single voyage) that shallow or legacy eastern/western river ports cannot dock. They provide genuine alternative entry points to relieve severe bottlenecks and long vessel turnaround times at the Lagos Port Complex and Tin Can Island ports. Equally significant, due to their strategic coastline positions along the Gulf of Guinea, these ports can function as regional transshipment centers where mega-ships offload cargo onto smaller vessels bound for neighboring nations (from Cameroon to the Republic of Congo) and landlocked countries like Chad and Niger. This is the leverage Gateway Deepsea Port cannot boast of. Apart from the many facilities in Lagos, the port of Cotonou in neighbouring Benin republic already has the status of a transshipment facility patronized by ship owners carrying mainly Nigeria-bound cargoes.
This is a critical area of economic growth Delta’s Sheriff Oborevwori and his Akwa Ibom counterpart, Umo Bassey Eno, should stridently explore. Granted that construction of seaports is very capital intensive, they do not have to spend their resources. The key is to develop a bankable business model and create a clement and peaceful operational environment for investors to buy into the project with the opportunities so obvious.
For Delta State, it knows why it lost its status as the operational and administrative hub for the major oil companies to Lagos. The communal strife and unchecked activities of non-state actors are issues that require strong political nerve to navigate. Lagos has shown it can be done and how. And it continues to reap from its bold initiatives. Delta can do it. So can Akwa Ibom.
A bold action can nullify the Gateway Port initiative and the benefits are legion. Nigeria cannot afford multiple deepsea ports in one axis.
