Despite the existence of some ports at Warri, Port Harcourt and Calabar, cargo headed for Nigeria often come through the Lagos ports. Importers often determine which ports their cargo should be taken to.

This has in no small way contributed to the damage of the Lagos/Benin/Ore Expressway. This is due to the high traffic of heavy duty trucks conveying containers and the congestion of t he Lagos ports.

Some South-South based shippers told The PUNCH that the choice of Lagos ports as a destination for their cargo was mostly born out of a desire to mitigate costs and maximise profits.

The President of the Rivers/Bayelsa States Shippers Association, Mr. Udofia Ofon, said importers in Rivers and Bayelsa states were forced to use the Lagos ports despite the congestion due to the high cost of clearing goods at the Onne Port. The cost of clearing goods was said to be twice that of the Lagos ports.

Ofon said, “In the East, all the ports are not functioning; we are not using them. The cost of doing business in Lagos ports is cheaper because the charges importers have to pay at the Onne Port are higher than what is obtainable in Lagos. This has affected the price of our goods, making them not to be competitive in the market.

“The cost of clearing goods at Onne is double that of Lagos. For instance, clearing a Toyota car at Lagos ports might cost you about N200,000 but at Onne it is N500,000. By the time you are through with all the port charges, How much would then sell the car?

“This is the reason why we are importing our goods through the Lagos ports with all the attendant risks on the roads and the congestion there.”

Lamenting the high cost of freight in Onne, Ofon blamed the Federal Government for giving the concessionaire, Intel Nigeria Limited, a monopoly of the port.

He said the terminal operators defended their exorbitant charges with the claim that the Onne port was designated an oil and gas port.

He also said vessels which were initially headed for the Area 1 Port, Port Harcourt, were being forced to berth at Onne. Ofon noted the situation was detrimental to the development of the Area 1 port.

He said, “The Area 1 Port is Nigeria’s premier port, constructed in 1961; now, it is a shadow of itself. Although the port has also been on concession to some private terminal operators, if you go there, you will observe that there is no activity. We have had situations where importers have asked that their goods be shipped to Area 1 only for the vessels to be turned back to Onne.”

Ofon called on the Federal Government to empower the Nigerian Shippers Council to enable them to tackle the situation and bring sanity to the ports.

He also listed other problems of the Rivers ports as alleged extortion by the various security agencies present at the ports and the lack of infrastructure.

He said, “The painful thing about this entire arrangement is that 95 per cent of the cargo being brought in through Lagos end up in Aba and Onitsha; meanwhile, ports which are close to us are lying idle. It will help our business if such vessels carrying our cargo berth at Port Harcourt instead of Lagos.

“There are so many problems which have compounded the cost of doing business at our ports here. The Nigerian Ports Authority is still collecting charges from the concessionaires that ought not to be there since it is now operated by the private sector. Then, there is the problem of port infrastructure.

“The clearing process is also cumbersome. By the time you get to the gate after your goods must have been cleared, you are faced with another re-examination and given another amount to pay. This makes nonsense of the examination that has been done earlier.”

Ofon added that shipping lines were reluctant to use neighbouring ports in the region due to the route.

He said, “They would say that most of the channels go through creeks and because of the problem of militancy, they are often reluctant to use these ports. The government has to secure our waters if these ports are to thrive. Go to Calabar port, it is like a fishing pond. Area 1 is like a swimming pool. Although I see this as a gang up against the Nigerian maritime industry to ensure that it doesn’t grow, I urge the FG to look into this matter.”

He said the association had met severally with the Rivers branch of the Shippers Council and the NPA on the issue.

The President of the Delta State Shippers Association, Mr. Austin Egbegbedia, described the Warri port as the best in the country but noted that the port was dormant because the government had refused to summon the political will to revive it.

He said, “In terms of infrastructure, Warri port is the best in the country. The major reason why ships have refused to come here is simply because the Escravos bar which is just because the port needs to be dredged. The last time this port was dredged was in the 80’s yet the Lagos ports are dredged every year. That of Rivers is done once in a while.

“Dredging ports is a normal activity; it prevents the buildup of silt. Because the Warri port has not been dredged for decades, deep ocean vessels cannot berth here; the draught is just six metres deep. If only the port can be dredged, it can take any size of vessel in the world.”

Deep ocean vessels that dare to come to Warri port are reportedly forced to stop before the Escravos bar and their contents trans-loaded into flat bellied vessels that can berth at the port. The process, however, is said to be costly.

Egbegbedia also condemned the monopoly enjoyed by Intel as the sole concessionaire of the Onne port, noting that the dominance had led to the exorbitant rate of charges at the terminal.

He said, “They call it an oil and gas port so they allocate the same charges meant for oil and gas products to other cargo like vehicles and clothes. Every businessman is out to mitigate cost so when you see that that of Onne is much higher, you are forced to use Lagos.

“It is really sad that Warri port is down. When Ajaokuta steel mill was being constructed, all the materials used in its construction came through the Warri port. There was no problem with the depth then; that tells you that there is nothing wrong with this port.

“There is a Customs Area Controller for Edo and Delta states but tell me what the man is controlling when there is no activity here. Are we second class citizens that the government cannot attend to the ports in areas that generate oil revenue?”

Egbegbedia added that the revival of the Warri port once again encouraged the export of cash crops from the region. He attributed the development of the then mid-western region to the viability of the Warri port.

He said, “If Warri port is working, farmers in this region will find it easy to bring their goods here for export. All they need to know are the days when refrigerated ships which would export their goods overseas, are coming. As it is now, they would first have to transport the goods to Lagos before they would then talk of getting refrigerated vessels for export.

“It is not enough for the government to set up a cargo airport at Asaba. It is cheaper for a ship to transport the same volume of goods that they intend to transport by air to any particular destination. The Federal government should please tell us why they spent so much money on the port infrastructure at Warri, yet they have done nothing to revive the port. Meanwhile, Lagos ports are congested.”

The Executive Secretary of the NSC, Mr. Hassan Bello, during a visit to the ports in Rivers State, condemned the indiscriminate charges reportedly meted out to shippers.

He said, “The NSC has been appointed as the regulator of the maritime sector and as such charges should not be increased without a meeting of all the stakeholders.”

He also said that a committee would be formed to look into all the issues raised by the Rivers State shippers association.

The Assistant General Manager, Public Affairs, NPA, Mr. Musa Iliya, could not be reached for comments on his telephone number; as it was said to be unavailable when our correspondent called.

A spokesperson for Intel who identified himself simply as Mr. Kalio said, “Intel is a specialised port and we don’t render any other service aside from oil and gas. Our job is logistics. Even though Onne has been on concession, it is still being controlled by the government. As such, we don’t fix our own charges. The charges are being fixed by the NPA through the Federal Ministry of Transport.

“Perhaps your sources failed to tell you that the number one problem they are facing here is piracy and militancy. That is why the freight rate to the port is high. The ship owner has to look at the risks involved and then charge the importer according to the port.”

cuuled from punch newspapers