The Akwa Ibom state government (Nigeria) has announced that the Ibaka Deep Sea Port PPP project is halted due to the fact that it is waiting the Environmental Impact Assessment of the Federal Ministry of Environment.

In early September we reported that the government was seeking federal backing for the development of the project. The project covers three local government areas and required EIA reports to attract funding from private investors.

At that time the government announced it had acquired a total area of 14,900 hectares for the port and it had solicited the involvement of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), which is the National governing body in Nigeria for PPP process, for the development of the project as a PPP.

The Ibaka port would be between 17 and 18 meters draught without dredging and  its quay area would span over two miles. On completion, mega vessels of over 10,000 TEUs will be calling at the port.

Ports Authority officials said that the agency will partner with Akwa Ibom state to ensure that the necessary infrastructure is provided.

Akwa Ibom is a state in Nigeria named after the Qua Iboe river. It is located in the coastal South-Southern part of the country. It is one of Nigeria's 36 states with a population of over 5 million people and more than 10 million people in diaspora.