7th June, 2010
Nigeriaâ€
Sources at the Aso Villa said a letter conveying governmentâ€
Julius Berger and PW were among the construction companies that submitted bids for the project in the twilight of the Yarâ€
widely departed from even the budgetary provision for it. According to the National Assembly members, government had estimated that the project would cost about N10 billion and had accordingly provided N4billion for it in the 2010 budget..
The award of the contract to Berger made the runway to be the most expensive to be built anywhere in the world, with the cost on a solid surface running to N14.2 billion per kilometre. Overwhelmed by public criticisms, President Jonathan ordered the Presidential Projects Assessment Committee (PPAC) to review the cost of the project. But the PPAC only reduced the cost by N13.5 billion, slashing the contract cost to N49.6 billion, after the reduction of the runway by 300 metres. The PPAC recommendation failed to mollify the critics as the cost of the runway per kilometer still stood at N11.8 billion.