The Federal Ministry of Works has officially terminated the contract for the rehabilitation of Section 1 (Abuja-Kaduna) of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano dual carriageway, previously awarded to Julius Berger.
The termination notice, issued on November 4, 2024, cites non-compliance with contractual terms, including cost adjustments and work stoppages.
In a statement released by Mohammed Ahmed, the ministry's Director of Press and Public Relations, it was emphasized that the decision followed prolonged negotiations over the past 13 months that yielded no significant progress.
The ministry had issued a 14-day notice to Julius Berger to remobilize to the site, which went unheeded.
The contract, initially awarded on December 20, 2017, for N155.75 billion, has faced numerous revisions and delays. While Sections II (Kaduna-Zaria) and III (Zaria-Kano) were partially completed under the previous administration, Section I has only seen about 27% completion over six years.
The current Minister of Works, David Umahi, expressed frustration over the lack of progress and accused Julius Berger of politicizing the project.
The Federal Executive Council had previously approved a downward review of the contract cost from N797 billion to N740 billion in September 2024.
However, despite this adjustment and a directive to accept the revised terms within seven days, Julius Berger responded by altering project estimates instead of complying.
