Operators of RoRo terminals will face a lull in the coming year as the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) gear up to implement the revived national automotive policy.

The Customs will stiffen the collection of the 70 per cent tariff placed on automobile importations to discourage importation of used cars and new fully-built units, as the federal government continues to build a more robust market for cars and buses being assembled locally.

Over 80 per cent of vehicles imports to Nigeria are used vehicles. According to terminal operators, only an average of 50,000 new cars is imported into Nigeria through the seaports annually.

“This means that lesser fully built cars will be imported in 2015 and the number is expected to further drop in 2016 because many of the automobile companies’ representatives in Nigeria are now assembling cars and buses in the country,” said Mr. Timothy Chukwuka, an operations head at a leading automobile terminal in Lagos.

Industry operators have also seen more automobile manufacturers setting up plants in Nigeria in 2015. Already, about 23 automobile firms have either begun assembling of vehicles in Nigeria, or have plans to commence operations between 2015 and 2016. Some leading auto manufacturers setting up plants include Stallion Motors, which is already assembling some Nissan and Hyundai brands, PAN, Dana Motors, which will build some Kia and Renault brands in Nigeria.

“With the current development, we expect that importation of completely knocked down units (CKDs) will give us significant market in 2015, but the problem here and which is the fear of operators is that not all the CKDs come through the RoRo terminals because they also containerised,” Chukwuka said.

At the peak of implementation of the new automobile policy at the ports earlier in the year, RoRo terminal concessionaires have raised fears that the federal government was delving into some sort of policy somersault, as same government leased out the ports for 25 years concession to the terminal operators, who have invested heavily in the terminals. The auto policy is seen as a new policy hindrance to their business only eight years into the concession contract.

The federal government said earlier in 2014, that the policy was part of the country’s effort to promote local manufacturing or assemblage of vehicles and to discourage importations of used vehicles; a situation, which pundits described as a welcome development even as some operators said that Nigeria was unripe for the policy.

Source: http://leadership.ng/business/397720/auto-policy-port-terminal-operators-face-hardship-2015

What becomes of the concessions? What happens to their remaining 17yrs? I agree the policy is a noble one which will move our economy forward in the near future, but the concession companies also need to be put into consideration while cooking up the policy. How will they recoup their investments?

Food for thought.

After assembling the cars in Nigeria by the various automobile manufacturers, how do you keep them running? Do you begin to import the serviceable parts? How can a user who drives his/her car in Sokoto maintain it? Perhaps, he can tow it to nearest dealership in Kaduna or Abuja & wait for the parts to be imported.

A poorly conceived policy that can hardly stand the taste of time. We re watching....Events in Nigeria develop like movies, we will wait for subsequent parts.