Lagos free zone attracts more firms, targets $12bn for GDP

Lagos Free Zone (LFZ) says it will contribute about $12bn to Nigeria’s annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2032.

The GDP target is made possible with more businesses showing interest in the area.

Managing Director of the LFZ, Dinesh Rathi, spoke on development plans of the zone at a recent meeting with journalists at the company’s head office in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos.

He said the $12bn GDP target would be achieved when the zone becomes fully functional.
Already, he said the LFZ had so attracted $2.5 billion as foreign direct investment (FDI).

Newstrends learnt that the zone being promoted by Tolaram Group sits on 850 hectares of land in Lagos and houses the Lekki deep seaport.
Rathi said the free zone requires at least 150 companies to operate at full capacity.
He stated, “If you look at the zone and the master plan, today, we are having 24 companies operating inside the zone, once you have 150 to 160 companies operating inside the zone, and if you put a number based on that, we can easily get an output equivalent of $12 billion,” he said.
“We did our workings and that is our vision. And then, with that number, you will be two to three per cent of the national GDP.
“This whole free zone along with the Lekki port can be a game changer in the years to come. And this has happened in the case of China and Dubai.”
As implied by Rathi, who doubles as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of LFZ, the $12 billion target is dependent on the influx of companies in the zone.
At the moment, only Indian corporates such as Kellogg’s, Colgate, Arla Foods, and BASF Corporation are tenants at the.
Firms from the South Asian country were last month invited to set up shops in the area.
The managing director also hinted of plans bring in local companies.
“We are in constant touch with a lot of Nigerian operators to get them inside the zone and leverage the port and the zone to create, not only a hub for domestic sales but also for exports under the continental free trade agreement and under the ECOWAS treaties,” he said.

As part of its growth plans, the company said it planned to develop a gas infrastructure to serve the electricity needs of companies in the area.

The LFZ has reportedly signed a 20-year gas infrastructure development agreement (GIDA) to connect the zone with the national gas transportation grid.

According to the organisation, Optimera Energy LFZE, a consortium of Falcon, FHN and ND Western will implement the project and “deliver piped natural gas to all LFZ tenants”.

Since LFZ’s development kicked off 10 years ago with the aim of enhancing the ease of doing business, the firm said it had received over 23 registered enterprises, manufacturing and logistics companies.