NIGERIA’S leading container terminal, the West Africa Container Terminal (WACT), has restated its commitment to deepening investment in Nigeria, particularly in increasing container handling capacities at the Onne Port.
WACT Managing Director, Aamir Mirza, stated this during the company’s 20th anniversary celebration at Onne, Rivers State recently.
Mirza said the need for further investment in cargo handling equipment is in response to the significant volume growth witnessed in the Eastern Nigerian market since the company started operations 20 years ago.
According to Mirza, “We are celebrating our achievements of the past 20 years. In 2000 when we started, we did about 35,000 container moves but last year we did over 200,000 moves, so cargo volume has grown over the years and recognizing this growth, we are investing in this business.
“We are at that point where we will experience new changes. With more equipment coming in, the mode of operation will change, and we believe we are setting that up for the next 20 to 25 years so that we can serve our customers better in terms of service delivery, customer satisfaction and improved capacity.
“Right now, we are going to invest $100 million and will continue to invest over the years. For example, in 2019, we did about $14 million and in previous years, we have been doing that regularly.”
He said WACT has done a lot of work in marketing Onne Port to the global community even as “the service level that the customers are getting in Onne is far superior to what they are getting elsewhere in Nigeria”.
“For example, we don’t have vessel waiting time. We don’t have issues with delivery of containers to our customers but customers taking delivery of cargoes from other locations still have challenges with vessel waiting time and service delivery,” Mirza said.
The WACT Managing Director commended the dedication and hard work of the company’s workforce, which he said contributed in no small measure to the company’s growth and success.
Also speaking at the event, the Country Manager of APM Terminals Nigeria, Klaus Laursen, described as impressive the successes recorded by WACT in its 20 years of existence, which he attributed to the growth in Nigeria’s economy.
Some of the staff who spoke at the event commended WACT for the achievements recorded just as they pledged their commitment to continue to contribute to the growth of the company to become the best container terminal in West Africa.
WACT is fast gaining a reputation as the gateway to Eastern Nigeria and a strong alternative to ports in Lagos with multi million dollars investment in cargo handling equipment.
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