Investor urges private sector participation in Akwa Ibom maritime sector

The promoter of Port Notel Ocean Terminal, Mr. Victor Akpanika has called for private sector participation in the maritime sector of the oil and gas rich Akwa Ibom State.

He maintained that the involvement of more private investors in the state maritime sector would do the coastal state good in the short and long run as more Nigerians especially the indigenes of the state would derive immense benefits from it.

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In a statement made available to newsmen recently, Mr. Victor Akpanike, who is also the Managing Director of Port Notel Limited picked holes in the arguments in some quarters that the Akwa Ibom State does not need more than one seaport due to the dearth of market demands within and outside the country.

Akpanika averred that the argument of insufficient market space demand was not convincing because Nigeria’s maritime domain was large enough to accommodate many players since it was considered the gateway to the West and Central Africa Sub-Regions.

According to him, “Nigeria currently has sufficient maritime market demand space that is very attractive to port developers, operators, financiers seeking to invest in port terminal and jetty facilities.  Several littoral and hinterland states are pushing themselves forward to attract local and foreign investors to come and invest in ocean, coastal, river or inland dry port facilities. Akwa Ibom State stands a better chance of accessing more foreign direct investment (FDI) for maritime infrastructural and industrial projects, provided the private sector is allowed to fully participate and collaborate with the government. Ibeno Local Government Area occupies the longest single stretch of the Atlantic Ocean coastline in Nigeria and one of the highest offshore oil and gas producing community without any single maritime infrastructural project in place”.

He argued that Port Notel Ocean Terminal was a private sector intervention in continuation of former Governor Victor Attah’s vision for a modern offshore ship repair yard industrial complex around Ibeno and Eastern Obolo Local Government Areas to complement the then proposed Ibaka Deep Seaport/Industrial City Development.

Akpanika also explained that there is no gain saying that several private groups of local and foreign investors and development partners sensitized by the promoters of Port Notel Ocean Terminal project  have  given assurances to invest in  this multi-billion dollars offshore maritime infrastructure  which was conceived ten years ago  in conjunction with some Nigerian/Akwa Ibom professionals and foreign maritime experts.  The project is indeed aimed at satisfying the yearnings and aspirations of the oil producing host communities comprising of Ibeno, Eastern Obolo, Eket, Esit Eket, Onna Mkpat Enin and Ikot Abasi Local Government Areas which were assured by the government of Architect Victor Attah of an Offshore Shipyard Complex and a university of science and technology with biases towards regional maritime capacity building, economic empowerment and infrastructural development to complement Ibaka/Ibom Deep Seaport/Industrial City.