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Louis Ibah
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL) appear headed for a collision course over the actual tenure of the concession agreement signed on the domestic terminal of the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA2) in 2006. Sources within the aviation parastatal told Daily Sun yesterday that the initial Built Operate and Transfer (BOT) contract for the MMA2 was scheduled to last for 12 years, (2006 – 2018). The source said that mid-2018, FAAN had notified the Federal Government of the expiration of the contract entered between it and BASL on the MMA2 and that the government had commenced plans to terminate the contract and get BASL return the airport to FAAN.
“The contract terms were very clear; it was to last for 12 years,” said the source who also hinted that even when attempt was made by BASL to elongate the tenure issue, “the then President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo rejected with a capital No! he wrote on the document , insisting it can only be for 12 years”
“So the documents with FAAN regarding the agreement between FAAN and BASL remains 12 years,’ said the source who wouldn’t want to be named.
However, Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL) is already challenging the plan to bring to an end its concession agreement with the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) over the management of MMA2.
The source explained that “We will like to set the records straight by stating that, The Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) offered Bi-Courtney a 36-year Build, Operate and Transfer of the MMA2 in a letter dated October 12, 2006 and an agreement was duly signed on the February 12, 2007 by the Minister of Aviation,” the company said in a statement by its spokesperson, Eniola Ade-Solanke.
“The agreement was further confirmed at a meeting held on July 7, 2009 chaired by the former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Late Mallam Umaru Musa Yar’adua, in attendance with the Minister of Aviation, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Attorney General of the Federation / Minister of Justice, Minister of Finance, MD/CEO of FAAN and the Chairman of Bi-Courtney amongst others,” added Ade-Solanke.
Ade-Solanke, stated that the clear provisions of the concession agreement between Bi-Courtney and the FAAN upholds the operation of the MMA2 terminal for an undisputed period of 36 years.
Since the BOT deal was signed in 2016, there has been no love lost between FAAN and BASL as the latter has alleged that the former as refused to cede the management of the first domestic terminal of the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA1) to BASL in line with the BOT deal. “FAAN through its actions has consistently breached its obligations in the concession agreement and has caused Bi-Courtney a loss of over N250billion,” the BASL spokesperson alleged.
