Mota-Engil, Portugal’s largest construction company, announced on Monday that it has entered into an 840 million-euro ($920.05 million) contract to provide and finance railway rolling stock in Nigeria.
In a statement, Mota-Engil confirmed that the contract is a component of a $2 billion rail construction initiative aimed at connecting Nigeria with its neighboring country Niger in the northern region.
“The contract reinforces the commitment of the Nigerian government to improve the regional connectivity and the economic development in the north of the country , and strengthens the capacity of Mota-Engil Group to support that development effort in this region of Africa,” the company said.
In November, a consortium headed by Mota-Engil, along with two Chinese ventures, was included in the shortlist by Nigeria’s Lagos state for a $2.5 billion bridge project.
Former president Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in Nigeria has made efforts to reconstruct the impoverished northern regions of the country, which have been severely impacted by Islamist insurgents for the past decade.
As part of a government initiative to construct railway networks throughout Nigeria, the project aims to address the inadequate transportation infrastructure that has hindered economic progress for many years.