$288m Aba Economic FZE comes on stream as Tinubu commissions $800m power plant on Monday
Joseph Irikefe
The Aba Integrated Power Project (AIPP) built by Geometric Power at whopping sum $800 million will eventually be flagged off for use on Monday, February 26.
This will be done by President Bola Tinubu to bring alive a project of close to 20 years that is aimed to give a kick of life to the slumbering economic potential of Aba, the traditional hub of economy in eastern Nigeria.
The long task to bring this project to reality eventually got the verve under Governor Alex Otti who has in the few months of being in power taken every step to show he is there for business and economic advancement.
The AIPP is the power and energy arm of the Enyimba Economic City Development Company FZE, the developers of Enyimba Economic City which occupies a 9,803 Hectares Greenfield Special Economic Zone in Abia State.
It is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) project of Crown Realties Plc., the Abia State Government, and the Federal Government of Nigeria under the Made in Nigeria for Export (MINE) initiative.
Geometric Power is owned by Nigerian engineer, Prof. Barth Nnaji
“The Enyimba Economic City and Geometric AIPP are jointly financed by African Export-Import Bank, (Afrexinbank) Cairo, Egypt which has Geometric AIPP as the recognised power partner for Enyimba Economic City, with which it has signed a 90MW Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for the first phase of Enyimba Economic City,” a statement from the group indicated.
The statement further noted that: “This momentous occasion therefore, not only signifies the launch of Geometric Power operation but also marks the significant step towards the take-off of $288.7 million, the first phase of the project.
Mega economic dream
The Aba Integrated Power Project covers nine local governments of Abia State including the commercial and industrial city of Aba within its cusps, and targets to provide 24/7 power supply. By the ring fence, AIPP is a full utility company in the entire value chain of the power business including generation, distribution, and marketing.
Enyimba Economic City is located in three local governments of Abia State, Ukwa West, Ukwa East, and Ugwunagbo with growth sectors in manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, entertainment, education, innovation and technology hub, commercial, lifestyle residential, and aviation.
The first phase of the project is 1,499 hectares of land that includes First Industrial Township and Logistics Park with Full Origin and Destination (OD) Inland Port connected by rail to both Port Harcourt and Onne seaports. On 14 November 2023, the Board of Afreximbank approved $201.7million syndicated debt for the project with Afreximbank underwriting $150million. Currently, the loan legal documentation is ongoing.
Structured for accessibility
The two interstate highways that are vital for connectivity for the project, Enugu – Port Harcourt (200km) and Onitsha – Owerri – Aba (161km) are also concessioned to a consortium led by Enyimba Economic City Development Company FZE that includes CCECC Nigeria Limited, Escher Silverman Global, UK (Technical), Instatoll of South Africa (Operations & Management) and Afrinvest (WA) Limited (Financial).
Route survey, redesign, traffic studies, revenue modeling, and willingness to pay studies, are currently ongoing on the roads. With the planned 82km highway from Azumini in Abia State bisecting the A3-Enugu Port Harcourt highway to Obinze in Owerri, the intervention on the external connectivity makes Enyimba Economic City 90 minutes driving distance accessible to the 11 states of Southsouth/Southeast of Nigeria and connected to economic activities of the whole Nigeria. The intermodal logistics, road, rail, airport, and seaports are also planned to make Enyimba Economic City a “global business hub in Nigeria” and African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) compliant.
Global acclaim
In 2019, the Enyimba Economic City won the first prize in the Global New Cities Business Plan Contest of the Chartered Cities Institute hosted in Washington DC, beating Black Stone Charter City in Australia to second prize and Novgorod New Hanse Town in Russia to third place, as a new city that can transform the economy of the country. The award included a US$25,000 cash prize.
Enyimba Economic City Development Company FZE has started to build marketing teams by engaging zone marketing/FDI Companies in India (Crescendo Worldwide), China (Brilliance Co. Limited), and Nigeria (Commodities Development Initiative). There is a total of 127 manufacturing leads from the three (3) territories currently.
The partners are Geometric AIPP, their indefatigable Chairman, Prof Bart Nnaji, and the Governor of Abia State, Otti.
The project is planned to be launched by Q2 of 2024, the handlers assured.