A Nigerian fishing port project has pivoted amidst a pullback from China in its global infrastructure investments.
Originally proposed in 2019, the Andoni Fishing Port and Processing Zone was to be built on a 2,500-hectare site in Nigeria’s Rivers State, and would have included a fishing port, processing facilities, warehousing, and ship-maintenance yards at an estimated cost between USD 1.5 billion and USD 2.5 billion (EUR 1.3 billion and EUR 2.2 billion at the time).
But the project has been scrapped, according to the CEO of the project development company, Emeka Chukwu. Chukwu told SeafoodSource it will be replaced by another project, the Atlantico Fishing Port and Processing Zone Limited, planned for Nigeria’s Akwa Ibom state.
“We changed the name of the project to reflect the change of the location of the project,” Chukwu said. “The location was changed to Akwa Ibom state, because that is where the topography we want for the project is suitable. We will definitely get the project on stream by 2023.”
Based in Andoni, a coastal region of Rivers State, the port was billed as the first of its kind in the West Central Africa Gulf of Guinea and would focus on fishing for mackerel, herring, tuna, and croaker as well as crustaceans for export, Chukwu told SeafoodSource in 2020. The Andoni project promoters had consulted with officials and fishermen in the Gulf of Guinea nations like Ghana, Senegal, and Guinea, he said.
China, originally envisioned as an investor, has quietly cut back its international investment scheme known as the Belt and Road Initiative, under which it sought to build fishing bases around the globe. After a decade of lending up to USD 1 trillion (EUR 1.03 trillion) to projects around the world, China is facing a real estate crisis at home and a debt-servicing crisis in developing countries it has lent to.
Additionally, financing conditions have deteriorated in the past year for developing countries, many of whom are struggling to refinance debt. Chukwu acknowledged an uphill battle in finding financing for the new project, especially with U.S. interest rates rising and energy price inflation soaring.
“Yes, China has cut back on its spending and lending abroad due to the COVID restrictions and some debt defaults, but we are working on local and some other funding sources,” Chukwu said.
Photo courtesy of Catay/Shutterstock
