AP Moller-Maersk has debunked report that it is planning to invest $600 million in Nigerian seaport infrastructure.
Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu had claimed that the Danish shipping conglomerate had promised to bring an additional $600 million worth of investment into Nigeria, after meeting with the company’s chairman, Robert Maersk Uggla.
However, according to Lloyd’s List, an online publication, the reported $600 million investment appears to be news to Maersk.
Lloyd’s List disclosed that Robert Maersk Uggla, chairman of A.P Moller Maersk met with President Bola Tinubu over the weekend, but did not sign a new investment deal with him.
It further revealed that despite a statement from Ajuri Ngelale, spokesperson of Tinubu detailing how the president had secured the purported investment during a World Economic Forum meeting in Riyadh over the weekend, Maersk officials have confirmed that no such agreement is in place and no deals have been signed.
According to Maersk, that reported deal does not exist.
Company officials said while Uggla did meet President Tinubu, no such deal had been signed.
“Maersk has been present in Nigeria for 35 years and, as a global provider of logistics services, we remain committed to developing opportunities for growth to people, the port sector, and businesses locally,” the company said in a statement to Lloyd’s List.
“Therefore, it is natural to have an ongoing dialogue with the administration. However, we are not able to comment on any investment talks,” the company officials stated.
Reports had it that Tinubu secured a $600 million investment from Danish shipping giant, A.P Moller-Maersk to expand Nigeria’s port infrastructure.
The report disclosed that the investment is part of a broader strategy to enhance the capacity of Nigerian ports to handle larger container ships, thus boosting trade and economic growth.
APM Terminals, a daughter company of the AP Moller-Maersk is the manager of Nigeria’s largest container terminal in Apapa Port, Lagos. The company claimed to have invested about $2 billion since the terminal was concessioned to it by the Nigerian government in 2006.
