Snake Island Port is a modern integrated maritime hub with three terminals located within Lagos Harbour, providing efficient access to West African trade routes.
By Blue Africa News
Freight giant Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) is set to develop a state-of-the art container terminal at Snake Island Port (SIP) in Lagos, Nigeria as part of MSC Group’s over US$1 billion investment in the country’s infrastructure and logistics sector.
On March 11, 2026, MSC announced that it had signed a 45-year concession agreement with Nigerdock, a Nigerian maritime and logistics company operating an integrated port and free zone in Lagos, setting the project in motion.
Additionally, MSC announced that it had finalised an engineering, procurement, and construction contract with ITB Nigeria Limited and DEME Group to develop the port. ITB Limited is a leading construction company in Nigeria and West Africa, while DEME Group, a leading contractor in the fields of offshore energy, dredging, marine infrastructure and environmental remediation is headquartered in Zwijndrecht, Belgium.
Diego Aponte, President of MSC Group said Nigeria’s evolving status as a major shipping hub in West Africa is key, adding that the new terminal will open up opportunities not only regionally, but continentally.
“Completing this key phase in the development of Snake Island Container Terminal with Nigerdock and our trusted partners demonstrates MSC Group’s commitment to providing excellent service to our customers in Nigeria and throughout Africa.”
“The new terminal will open up opportunities, enhance efficiency, and elevate Snake Island Port as a major global shipping center. Together with our Group’s other long-term investments in Nigeria, it will generate many local jobs and significantly increase economic revenue and resilience.”
According to MSC, the terminal is designed to have a 910-meter Quay able to use Ship to Shore (STS) cranes and Mobile Harbor Cranes (MHC) serving both deep-sea vessels and barges.
The design also considers an initial dredging depth of -16.5 m Chart Datum (CD), aligning with the existing depth of the navigation channel, and a 30-hectare yard with potential expansion areas designed for hybrid Rubber Tired Gantries (RTG).
Snake Island Port is a modern integrated maritime hub with three terminals located within Lagos Harbour, providing efficient access to West African and international trade routes.
The port combines multi-terminal flexibility with Free Zone advantages to support cargo movement, with the new infrastructure expected to boost its profile once complete.
In October 2025, the port management reaffirmed its commitment to port infrastructure development and economic advances, during a familiarisation tour of port terminals in Lagos Habour by the governing board of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
“This visit indicates the critical partnership between private entities and government agencies in driving regulatory compliance and operational excellence. We appreciate the Authority’s continued support for Snake Island Port, as we develop world-class infrastructure which strengthens economic growth in the region and further connects Africa with global trade, said Maher Jarmakani, Executive Chairman of Snake Island Integrated Free Zone (SIIFZ) during the tour.
“We commend the management of Nigerdock and SIIFZ for their rigorous efforts in developing the terminals through strategic partnerships with global industry players and investment in key infrastructure. This development is crucial for economic advancement, and we are delighted to provide the required support, noted Dayo Adeyeye, chairman of the NPA governing board.
Construction of the new terminal is part of the plans to decongest Lagos ports, one of the long-standing challenges in Nigeria.
In December 2025, the Federal Government unveiled the enterprise content management system (ECMS) focused on modernising public‑service delivery and improving the ease of doing business in the country’s maritime sector, by enhancing operational efficiency and eliminating administrative delays.
ECMS was designed to eliminate inefficiencies and delays linked to paper-based processes, and manual workflows in the country’s public institutions, among those in charge of the maritime sector such as the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
Oliver Ochieng, Blue Africa News