Despite challenges in the building and construction sector of the Nigerian economy, construction giant, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc will continue to be in a strong position to succeed, Managing Director, Dr. Lars Ritcher, has said.
Speaking at the company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) Thursday in Abuja, he the company’s confidence is bolstered by the robust order backlog and diversified portfolio which includes projects of national priority, funded reliably from outside the federal budget.
Richter further said that Julius Berger’s strength is further reinforced by its commitment to innovation and the pioneering of state-of-the-art construction technologies, and by her leading quality management systems, unmatched HSE performance, and highly skilled and dedicated workforce.
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According to him, JBN has a firm competitive edge in Nigeria’s construction sector, underpinned by its unbending pledge to quality, reliability and integrity.
Speaking on ongoing projects being undertaken by the company, the MD said that since its flag-off in June 2018, considerable progress has been achieved on the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Road.
He disclosed that Julius Berger is working across all three road sections simultaneously, he said the objective is to deliver a timely solution for the complete rehabilitation of this key infrastructure which connects half of Nigeria’s population residing in the north to the rest of the country.
Furthermore, on the same project the Managing Director said Julius Berger has pioneered the use of cold recycling methodology which provides for the milled-off pavement to be recycled and improved for reuse in paving the base layer of the road.
“Our strategy is to rollout this solution for other future projects… and we believe that as the pioneers of Cold Recycling methodology in Nigeria, that Julius Berger is in the position to revolutionize road rehabilitation across the nation,” he said.
On the Bodo-Bonny Road, the Chief Executive told shareholders that in the past year, the company has also made progress on the construction of the project.
Technically, the road is a massive and highly challenging undertaking with a scope of work comprising not only roads, but also several bridges and cross culverts… to be realized in a very tough natural environment, through low-lying marsh and swampy areas with tidal movements.
“Socially and economically, the road is a milestone project for the advancement of the Niger Delta. As the first road link between the Island and the mainland, the Bodo Bonny Road will enable greater access for the development of infrastructure on Bonny Island, particularly in view of the NLNG Train 7 Project which we all hope will come on stream soon.”
Emphasising that in terms of mega-projects, Julius Berger’s latest project, Dangote’s Petroleum Refinery Project is clearly one where the company is proving its expertise, Dr. Ritcher said that Julius Berger has been successful in delivering the needed basic infrastructure within its scope of work, and due to good performance, have achieved additional scope.
Even as he highlighted the giant strides of the company in several other spheres, the managing director was hopeful that Julius Berger will continue to strengthen its core construction business, balancing drive for efficiency and effectiveness with commitment to a standard of excellence second to none.