APM Terminals to invest $600m in Nigeria after talks with Tinubu

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Global port operator, APM Terminals, says it plans to invest an additional $600m in Nigeria.

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The firm disclosed this to President Bola Tinubu at a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali on Thursday.

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The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Sunday Dare, who briefed journalists on the day’s engagements, said the announcement came during a session with the company’s top leadership in which Tinubu discussed opportunities for deepening Nigeria’s infrastructure and port development.

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Speaking about the company, which handles approximately half of Nigeria’s containerised trade across its facilities in Apapa, Onne and Kano, Dare said, “They are already in Nigeria. They have an agreement and contract to be there till 2031, but at that meeting they announced they are interested in investing another $600m, and that was a very important meeting.”

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APM Terminals and Barging Marine Solutions Ltd. have an exclusive lease agreement running until September 2031 to expand port and logistics services in and around Apapa.

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Through its terminals in Apapa, Kano and Onne, APM Terminals handles about half of Nigeria’s containerised trade and provides direct and indirect employment to more than 10,000 Nigerian families.

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The company, in September 2024, launched a $115m upgrade and expansion project at the West African Container Terminal in Onne.

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Dare described the $600m investment as one of the largest single port and logistics investment commitments in Nigeria since the privatisation of terminal operations under the port reforms of the mid-2000s.

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He noted that activities at the Africa CEO Forum had been characterised by a succession of high-value engagements.

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According to him, Tinubu had earlier participated in the forum’s plenary session before moving into a series of bilateral and investor meetings.

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The President met with the top leadership of the International Finance Corporation for discussions focused on energy, housing and transportation infrastructure development.

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“They will be sending a mission to Nigeria as soon as the President approves it.

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“The IFC is sending a mission to Nigeria, and you know what that means, they are looking at four critical areas that need support,” Dare said, adding that the IFC had indicated willingness to work with the administration on its energy portfolio and power asset class.

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He explained, “When it comes in, you have employment for our people, they will pay taxes, the factory lines will come alive.

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“The benefits of such investment eventually percolate through the economy.”

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Tinubu also met with a group of solid minerals investors who have operated in Guinea for a decade and are now exploring opportunities in Nigeria, Dare said, describing them as practitioners of an integrated approach combining infrastructure development with mining operations.

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He revealed, “They are interested in coming to invest in Nigeria. They are into an integrated approach, that is infrastructure, mining and all that goes with it.”

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Fielding questions on when ordinary Nigerians would begin to feel the benefits of such engagements, the presidential aide argued that while bilateral mechanisms take time to yield results, the groundwork being laid at the summit would ensure follow-through.

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He explained, “There is a transition period from the MOU signed, you are going to have a binational commission from both countries.

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“They are going to sit and work out the nitty-gritty of it. It does take time, but there must be a starting point.

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“What is important is that Nigeria is getting critical attention. Investors are swarming all over our country, and repeatedly we hear them say: ‘Because of the success of your reforms, we have the confidence. You have brought stability into the Nigerian economy.’ That is what we hear all the time.”

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The Africa CEO Forum runs from Thursday to Friday in Kigali, the Rwandan capital.

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