The Federal Government, through the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has formally awarded the contract for the remedial dredging and channel restoration of the Escravos water corridor at Warri Port. The intervention aims to expand the waterway, restore functional navigational drafts, and reactivate commercial shipping across Delta State and the wider South-South region.
​The operational briefing took place Tuesday, 25 August, at the Warri Port Complex during an official facility tour and stakeholder engagement session led by NPA executives.
​Speaking to newsmen at the venue, Mr. Mohammed Bello-Koko, Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, revealed that dredging operations are already under way and roughly halfway completed.
​Project Details and Strategic Objectives will include The Draft Restoration; Reversing heavy siltation caused by the collapse of the channel’s breakwaters a decade ago, which drastically reduced water depths from seven meters down to three meters in critical sections.
Significantly reducing incidents of merchant vessels running aground while permitting larger, ocean-going ships to call directly at Delta State ports.
The project will also include; Undertaking comprehensive charting and mapping from the Escravos Fairway Buoy down to Koko Port for the first time in over ten years to ensure accurate placement of aids to navigation.
Project purpose is to Decongest Lagos Corridors by diverting regional maritime traffic to Warri, Koko, and Port Harcourt to lessen cargo pressure on western ports and cut logistics costs for South-East and South-South importers and Deploying additional marine equipment and upgraded signal systems to support safe, round-the-clock vessel transit.
​During a courtesy visit to his palace, Ogiame Atuwatse III, the Olu of Warri, commended the initiative, noting that revitalizing regional waterways will serve as a vital economic engine for host communities and regional commerce.
