NPA expresses displeasure over slow pace of repair works by BUA

The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has expressed displeasure with BUA Terminal Limited over the slow pace of repair works on some of the collapsed quays within its terminal.

In a statement signed recently by the NPA’s Spokesman, Ibrahim Nasiru, the agency’s Managing Director, Mohammed Bello-Koko urged the terminal operator to increase the pace at which it is carrying on these repairs.

According to the NPA, “We also looked at the BUA part of the berth and I think we have berths 5-8 that have collapsed. Some of these berths were built in the 1920s and they have really decayed and we have to decommission some of the berths. The agreement is for BUA to reconstruct some of these berths. We have given them approval for the final design which the company has submitted and we expect construction should resume very soon.

“We are urging the terminal operator to increase the pace at which they are carrying on these repairs. We expected that the reconstruction should have started a few months ago, but it hasn’t. We understand the need to plan properly and now that planning is over and we expect they should resume reconstruction on these berths soon.

“We also came to look at the dockyard. The dockyard is an integral and important part of the port ecosystem where vessels are docked for repairs, but you can see it is dilapidated. We are considering either finding private investors to invest in the dockyard or the NPA to take up that responsibility to rehabilitate the finger jetty and get the berth to work.”

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The NPA boss also added that the agency is willing to increase tariff relief by as much as 30 per cent for service providers, as part of a multi-pronged approach to attract more vessel and cargo traffic to the eastern ports.

He explained that the proposed move is being considered having observed that a similar concession of a 10 per cent rebate granted by the Authority to terminal operators some years back failed to yield the desired result, as shipping traffic to these ports witnessed no significant growth.

According to him, the Authority is already considering the proposal for a 30 per cent tariff rebate being sought by the terminal operators at these ports. He however warned that such a request would not be automatic but conditional.

The tariff relief that we will provide will be based on the commensurate impact it will have on cargo and vessel traffic, he stressed.