Kola Karim’s New Mega Deal

Society Watch

Serial entrepreneur and Chairman of Shoreline Group, Kolade Karim, has no doubt earned a name for himself through his visionary contributions to Africa’s economy.

It is not for mean achievement that the man who is also the Agbaoye of Ibadanland is rated among Nigeria’s high-flying tycoons. The billionaire is unarguably a visionary whose contributions to the nation’s economy would forever be cherished. His record of incisive investment and vision to reshape Nigeria’s business climate remains unequal.

For Karim, a major player in the energy sector whose intimidating profile dwarfed many of his contemporaries, cutting deals comes as easy as a hot knife slices through butter. Multiple times, he has proved to the world that he is indeed a genius and a cognoscente when it comes to investment and the art of making money.

Recently, the serial entrepreneur got a mega deal when his company was awarded the concession of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja (NAIA) and Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport Kano (MAKIA).

As disclosed, The Corporacion American Airport Consortium, which comprises the Corporation American Airports, Mota Engil Africa, and Mota Engil Nigeria, emerged as the preferred bidder.

Mota Engil Nigeria is a joint venture between Mota-Engil, a public-listed Portuguese contractor, and Shoreline Group, an energy and infrastructure conglomerate owned by Karim.

The Corporacion American Airport Consortium will make upfront payments of $7 million for NAIA and $1.5 million for MAKIA. During the concession period, total projected nominal revenues accruable from the combined concession of NAIA and MAKIA exceed $4 billion, of which over 70 per cent will be payable to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

The partnership arrangement will be effective for 20 years for NAIA and 30 years for MAKIA.

It was gathered that the mega deal was awarded to the firm following a comprehensive evaluation process that commenced with the Request for Qualification (RFQ) advertised in local and international media on August 16, 2021, and subsequent rigorous evaluation of technical and financial bids, coupled with due diligence visits conducted from  December 27-29, 2022, and January 9-10, 2023, the Corporacion American Airport Consortium has emerged as the preferred bidder.

The consortium is globally recognized for its superior technical expertise in the design, construction, management, and operation of infrastructure. The Corporation American Airports, a New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) listed airport operator, has a presence across three continents, managing 53 airports in six countries and serving approximately 82.4 million passengers in 2019.

It was hinted that Shoreline Group, in 2018 partnered with Mota-Engil, a publicly listed Portuguese contractor, to establish Mota Engil Nigeria to leverage its clout in Nigerian business and political circles to target large-ticket infrastructure construction projects in Nigeria. Mota-Engil holds 51 per cent of Mota-Engil Nigeria, while Shoreline owns 49%. Mota-Engil is active in civil construction, public works, port operations, waste, water, and logistics. The company has a present market cap of more than $700 million.