Lagos Secures Funding for €410 million Omi Eko Project at COP28

Lagos State has secured funding for the €410 million Omi Eko project at the ongoing 28^th Conference of the Parties on Climate Change (COP28) being held in Dubai, UAE.

The investment for the inland waterways transportation project will be financed by an AFD loan of €130 million, an EIB loan of €170 million, a grant from the European Union of €60 million, and the remainder will be provided by the Lagos State government.

Nairametrics gathered this information from a publication on the website of the Embassy of France in Abuja.

The Omi Eko project is an initiative of the Lagos State Government under the Lagos State Climate Action Plan 2020-2025 that aims to decarbonize public transportation through the development of mass public inland waterways transport (IWT) with electric ferries (e-ferries).

It is projected that the Omi Eko project will achieve a significant carbon reduction of an estimated 41,000 tCO2 per year, according to the publication on the website of the Embassy of France in Nigeria.

What to know about the Omi Eko project

The Lagos State Government, through the Omi Eko project, aims to develop 15 ferry routes cutting across the Lagos lagoon, including 140 kilometres of IWT network that will be marked and dredged.

Furthermore, the Omi Eko project involves the upgrading of 25 ferry terminals and jetties, as well as the acquisition of 75 electric-powered vessels.

The inland waterways transportation project will also feature charging stations at pontoons which would be powered by a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) supplied by solar PV panels. The BESS would be supported by the grid and a CNG backup generator.

The Omi Eko project will also be equipped with equipment for routine maintenance, a Control Centre for the IWT network, and associated systems including ticketing.

Also, the Lagos State Waterways Authority would serve as the project implementing by providing technical and engineering assistance.