The Ministry of Aviation has said the proposed Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in its roadmap would serve the National Carrier when established.
Mr James Odaudu, the Director of Public Affairs, Ministry of Aviation, made this known in an interview on Thursday in Abuja.
According to him, the proposed independent MRO facility in Nigeria will address the maintenance demands of airlines in West and Central Africa, while also providing maintenance services for the National Carrier and the Africa Leasing Company.
He noted that this move would also improve national revenue, adding that the MRO would be structured on a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) model, with the government acting as both the guarantor of the concession and project facilitator.
Odaudu added that the private sector consortium would be responsible for designing, building, financing, operating and maintaining the proposed facility for an agreed concession period.
“The consortium is expected to comprise an independent MRO Company, a Real Estate Development Company, Construction Company, Finance and institutional Investor.
“The proposed facility will have the capacity to serve both Narrow Body and Wide Body aircraft maintenance requirements and will be located in Abuja, Nigeria.
“The progress now is at an advanced stage in the Procurement Phase. A preferred partner has been selected, and negotiations are to commence soon,” he said.
He said the next step would be the commencement of negotiations with the preferred partner and finalisation of Full Business Case (FBC).
Odaudu also said that part of the Aviation roadmap was to develop Cargo/ Agric-Allied Airport terminals via a design, build, finance, operate and maintain model of Public Private Partnership (PPP).
“To take advantage of the agricultural value products potential of Nigeria, the need arose to develop dedicated Cargo/ Agro- Allied Terminals and ancillary infrastructure in each of the six (6) geographical zones of the country to facilitate the movement of fresh produce by air.
“The proposed terminals will have facilities such as a dry Cargo Terminal warehouse; Perishable Cargo Terminal with Cold Chain Stage: climate chambers for storage and handling of temperature sensitive products, including pharmaceuticals, and a bonded warehouse,” he said.
Oduadu disclosed that the project had reached the final stage of the Project Development Phase, after the completion of the Outline Business Case (OBC) and its submission to the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) for review and issuance of compliance certificate.
He pointed out that all the projects outlined in the Aviation Road Map would soon be fully implemented.
