By Michael Olatunji
The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) has assured Nigerians of its readiness and preparedness to deliver on the Lagos Ibadan Standard Gauge.
The Project Manager Xia Lijung, made this known Saturday, while conducting selected media practitioners round the project.
It was the first time CCECC will be organising a media tour of the Lagos-Ibadan train corridor.
Lijung said despite the challenges they have faced in actualising the project, the CCECC is prepared to ensure its timely delivery
He said the project has advanced and all civil works are almost completed, adding that the impending raining season will not pose any threat to the project again.
The project Manager said the Nigerian government is excited about the standard gauge and CCECC is happy to be a major partner of the government in bringing the standard gauge closer to the grassroots.
He disclosed that the Nigerian Railway Corporation has been experiencing a passenger surge since it began trial running of the project on December 2, adding that this has reinforced believe that the Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge is not a misplaced priority of the government.
He said:”We have completed work on the entire project site from Agege to Ibadan and we can confidently say that we would be able to deliver on the project by April or May.”
According to him the Federal Government through the Minister of Transportation has continued to commend the pace of the work and is happy with them for how far they have tried to stay on the project adding that the CCECC would continue to justify the confidence reposed in it by the Nigerian people through their government.
He said the most challenging axis of the project has remained the Lagos corridor, pointing out that Apapa is the area with the lowest work rate because the management has not handed the site over to them.
He however indicated that at a meeting last week, the NPA has agreed to hand over the port area to them for their operations adding that increased activity would begin there within the next two weeks.
He disclosed that the CCECC has began to do preliminary works within 400 metres into the port adding that more activity would begin to be seen now that the NPA has agreed to surrender the area to CCECC for it’s construction.
He assured that when the project is completed the construction giant would deliver rail infrastructure structure that would be comparable to anywhere in the world for passenger and cargo traffic.
Lijung is accompanied on the trip by the CCECC PR consultant Prince Abdulrauf Akinwoye and Business and Contracts Officer, Lagos Section CCECC Engr Yakubu Adogie, Mr Vincent Liu, the Business and Contract Manager Alan Chen among others.