Virgin Atlantic and the Nigerian government have signed an agreement to create a new international airline for the country – Virgin Nigeria.

Incorporated in Nigeria, the airline will be based at Murtala Mohammed International Airport and be 51 per cent owned by Nigerian investors, with the remainder held by Virgin Atlantic.

The first seats are expected to go on sale in the New Year with flights beginning a few weeks later.

Investors will be sought via a private placement process to be completed before the launch and total investment is expected to be in the region of US$50m (£27.8m) – with Virgin’s 49 per cent investment being around $24.5m (£13.6m).

The partners expect to open share ownership to all Nigerian investors via an IPO on the Nigerian Stock Exchange once the airline has established a successful track record.

Richard Branson, joint owner of Virgin Atlantic with Singapore Airlines, said: “Nigeria is taking yet another bold step forward and all of us at Virgin are honoured and excited to be selected by the Nigerian government to play a role in creating a new 21st century airline for Nigeria’s 133 million people.

“We aim to create the best airline, not just in Nigeria, but in the world, based in Africa.”

The new airline will not affect Virgin Atlantic’s existing services between Nigeria and the UK.