Freight Cost To Soar As Vessels Attack Rises At Ports
Incessant attacks on vessels discharging while berthing at Nigerian terminals will attract additional $200,000 in freight cost at the nation’s seaport, LEADERSHIP investigation has shown.
Freight cost is the cost incurred in moving goods. It includes packing, palletizing, documentation and loading unloading charges, carriage costs, and marine insurance costs.
Recently, terminal operators operating at the Apapa Port Complex raised the alarm of incessant attacks on vessels at berth by miscreants and hoodlums.
Shipping experts have argued that a minimum of $200,000 (N72million at a prevailing rate of N360 to a dollar ) would be introduced as insurance premiums by foreign shipping companies before they could call that the nation’s seaports.
For instance, MV Pamyat; MV Asia Ruby, MV Aquata, MT Sichem New York, MV Kiana and MV Dino were all attacked at different time in the last four months at the Lagos and Tin-Can ports.
MV Pamyat, with International Maritime Organisation (IMO) number 8701040 was attacked at berth 14, operated by ENL Consortium of the Lagos Port Complex (LPC), Apapa onn March 2, 2018 when some bandits gained access into the ship with ease.
MV Asia Ruby was attacked at 0415hours on April 24, 2018 at ENL, consortium on berth 8 of Lagos Port Complex (LPC) while discharging her cargo. The robbers carried out their nefarious act on the ship without resistance from anyone.
The Tin Can Island Port Complex (TCIPC) also in Lagos is not spared the robbery attacks.
A report from the Port Security Officer (PSO) of TCIPC, indicated that at about 0320hours on Friday March 3, 2018, eight persons suspected to be armed sea robbers launched attacks onboard MV Aquata and MT Sichem New York, which were discharging cargoes at berths 2 and 1 operated by Josepdam of the port respectively.
Preliminary findings revealed that a gang of sea robbers came through the waterfront in an outboard engine boat and launched attacks onboard MV Aquata where three of the robbers succeeded in climbing into the vessel while the remaining five were on standby inside their boat by the portside of the vessel. The crew watchmen onboard sighted one of the robbers at the paint stores and raised alarm immediately.
However, when the terminal security and armed policemen on duty rushed onboard but discovered that a watchman onboard was injured by one of the robbers before they jumped into the water and escaped. There was blood stain on the main deck of the vessel,” the PSO stated in the report.
Further findings revealed that in the wee hours of March 18, a group of sea robbers numbering about 20 gained access into Josepdam terminal through the waterfront and headed to the terminal’s fuel dump.
The robbers beat up and tied the security guards at the fuel dump before they connected a hose from their standby boat to evacuate fuel from the terminal’s fuel tank.
The robbers, who reportedly operated unchallenged for more than an hour, succeeded in carting away about eight drums of diesel from the terminals.
Four days later and precisely on March 22, 2018, the robbers called at Josepdam again. This time, they launched an attack on a ship named MV Kiana. The ship, which was discharging its cargo of bulk sugar belonging to BUA Sugar Refinery, has Nura Shipping Limited as its agent in Nigeria.
The robbers, as usual, stormed the ship using canoe, which they brought alongside the ship and gained access onboard with the aid of a rope tied to a hook.
At the Rivers Port in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, the sea robbers are also having a field day. It was revealed that a ship, MV Dino, laden with 20,721MT of bulk wheat was attacked about 80 nautical miles to the Fairway Buoy on her way to PTOL terminal at about 5am on Saturday 7th April 2018.
These unabated attacks are however confirmed by the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) at the Quarterly Stakeholders Meeting of the agency in Lagos last week.
The Managing Director of the authority, Hadiza Bala Usman who was represented at the meeting by the Executive Director, Marine and Operations, Dr. Sekonte Davies also noted that some of the attacks on vessels discharging at the port came from miscreants occupying shanties and illegal structures around the ports.
She said, “Of great concern to us recently is the attack on vessels, especially at the ENL terminals, the attacks have increased and we are very worried, we have also established that it happens especially when they are offloading.
The NPA MD also disclosed that part of the measures to forestall the attack is the the demolition that the agency is carrying out in collaboration with Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC) Nigerian Navy, and the Police.
“It is an ongoing action carried out to ensure that we have a safer environment to do business, devoid of attacks.
“We have started pulling down all illegal structures and shanties hindering free movement to the port”
But, the General Manager of ENL Consortium, Mark Walsh one of the terminal under attack also complained of high rate of unchecked attacks on vessels at the Apapa Port in the last four months.
The attacks according to the manager are done around the Apapa axis and the attacks have informed shipping agents mulling hiring armed police officers before cargo discharge at the seaport.
The armed police officers are to wade off miscreants attacking vessels at berth.
Speaking to LEADERSHIP, a maritime consultant and policy Analyst, Galtima Liman agreed that the spike in attacks on vessels at berth would increase the premium and insurance on vessels to the nation’s ports.
He also wondered why shanties would e allowed close to the Lagos Port saying that would also fuel attack on vessels.
“There is going to be increase in insurance and premium for shipping companies that are coming to berth in the port,” he told LEADERSHIP correspondent. He continued, “and despite improvement in making Nigeria food dependent, we still substantially rely on import and most of the vessels that ferry these imports are foreign vessels and in the event that we are not fully compliant with the ISPS codes that brought lot of improvement in the security of the ports after the 9/11 attack in the United States.
Speaking on shanties around the Lagos ports, he said, “having shanties around some ports is an eyesore and I think these is a clarion call on administration of NPA and NIMASA to ensure that our ports are rid of these adjoining shanties,” he told LEADERSHIP Yesterday.
Also speaking, the President, Nigerian Shipowners Association (NISA), Alhaji Aminu Umar said attacks on vessels at Nigerian ports and jetties have been on the rise in recent time with little or no action from requisite agencies.
The NISA President said the implication of the attacks on ships at the ports are grave and “it puts our name in the international maritime wall and that it is dangerous and high risk area to do business particularly for ships to call”.
According to him, “If the ports in Nigeria are considered as high risk area, what it means is that any ship owner coming here pays an additional insurance premium for coming into a zone that is called war risk zone.
Some pay as high as $100, 000 to $200, 000 dollars for every seven days they are to stay on Nigeria waters.”
By YUSUF BABALOLA, LEADERSHIP NEWSPAPER.
