The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has disclosed that the Eastern ports cannot serve as an alternative to the Lagos ports because it has expired as well as its breakwater collapsed.
Speaking in an interaction with journalists recently, the acting managing director, NPA, Muhammed Bello-Koko said each of the ports in the Eastern port have one challenging issue or the other making it non-viable for vessels to call.
Eastern Port comprises Rivers Port, Onne Port, Calabar Port and Delta Ports. The Rivers Port has two terminals that handle liquid, dry and bulk cargoes.
Onne Port, on the other hand, is one of the largest oil and gas free zone ports in the world and has four terminals that handle container, oil and gas, dry or wet bulk as well as general cargoes and other logistic services.
Delta Port has eight terminals, which are approved to handle multipurpose cargoes, while Calabar Port has three terminals and they mainly handle oil and gas cargoes.
However, the MD disclosed that the Warri Port has a breakwater that has collapsed 10 years ago, thereby, allowing siltation into the channel.
He said, “Each of those ports have other issues like Warri Port for Instance, has a breakwater that has collapsed probably nine to 10 years ago. The breakwater is a physical infrastructure that is built in the sea to break the sea waves into the channel and also to reduce sedimentation and siltation into the channel. Also, in Warri Port, a pipe that is about seven meters is buried which is an NNPC pipeline and that means you cannot dredge deeper than seven meters with economy of scale that means you cannot bring bigger vessels.”
He continued, “As for Calabar port, its distance is far away from the port, the dredging there hasn’t been done for so long. There’s also a court matter between NPA and the last company that was given the dredging contract. We are working to resolve it out of court. Meanwhile, in Warri, there was a remedial dredging that was done four years back or so and this year we are working on it and we hope that within this year there will be remedial dredging in some certain locations in the Belmark, which is the entrance into the channel that will help us to bring in bigger vessels.
“Rivers port lifespan has already expired, the berth was built with sheet piles when it was built in the 1940s or 50s, so there are limitation as to how deep you can actually dredge that part of the Eastern port.”
Bello-Koko also disclosed that the Authority cannot decide for importers where to discharge their cargoes saying high concentration of industries in Lagos, and Ogun States are responsible for reasons 70per cent of cargoes come in through Lagos Ports.
