The Ogun State Government and Dubai based global ports and logistics operator DP World have signed Memoranda of Understanding for the development of the Gateway Deep Sea Port and the Ogun State Blue Marine Special Economic Zone, with more than $7 billion in initial investment expected across the projects, according to Punch and The Cable. The agreements were signed in Paris on September 24, 2026, in the presence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun and senior officials from DP World and the Nigerian Ports Authority. The proposed Gateway Deep Sea Port at Ogun Waterside will feature a four kilometre berth and an 18 metre draft, allowing it to accommodate larger vessels while providing an alternative gateway to the congested Lagos port corridor. The projects are projected to create more than 50,000 direct jobs when fully developed.
The port will be integrated with a proposed 10,000 hectare Blue Marine Special Economic Zone, creating an industrial platform linking maritime logistics with manufacturing, processing and export activities. According to the Presidency, the Federal Government will support road, rail and power connectivity required to make the corridor commercially viable, including the 28 kilometre Ogun section of the Lagos Calabar Coastal Highway. The Gateway Deep Sea Port is expected to reduce pressure on the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports while lowering logistics costs and delays for importers and exporters. The wider development is also being positioned as a potential trade gateway for the African Continental Free Trade Area, connecting Nigerian production to a continental market of about 1.4 billion people.
For Nigeria, the proposed investment represents a significant expansion of maritime and industrial infrastructure at a time when improving logistics efficiency is central to attracting manufacturing and strengthening non oil exports. The combination of deep sea shipping capacity, industrial land and export focused production could create a broader economic corridor around Ogun Waterside, particularly as Ogun already has a large concentration of manufacturing and industrial activity. The Presidency said the agreements are intended to move the projects from investment frameworks towards implementation, with government promising regulatory and institutional support. The scale of the proposed development will ultimately depend on financing, construction and the fulfilment of the commitments contained in the agreements, but the planned $7 billion plus investment places the Gateway Deep Sea Port and Blue Marine Special Economic Zone among Nigeria’s major proposed infrastructure projects.
