Story by Dili Utomi.
The main hall of the Sheraton Hotel Ikeja was all beehive Thursday as the Association of Maritime Journalists Of Nigeria (AMJON) played host to stakeholders for a conference with the theme: Vessel Acquisition/Construction: Nigerian Banks, Insurance Firms, Government and the Blue Economy.
In attendance were Abdulkadir Ahmed, the managing director of the NLNG Shipping and Marine Services Limited (NSML), Temitope Badmus representative of the executive secretary, NSC, Isichei Osamgbi representing the DG, NIMASA, Dr. Charles Okerefe of the Nigerian Maritime University, Okerenkoko, Sarah Ballah-Kwalla representing the MD of the NPA, Suleyman Wakama representing the MD of NIWA, Comptroller Dera Nnadi of the Tin Can Island Port Command of the Nigeria Customs Service who represented the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi and many other guests as well as journalists.
Paul Ogbokiri is the president of AMJON and he opened the conference with a speech detailing some of the compelling needs for the conference, the theme according to him “Was carefully chosen to capture intendment of the association which is to bring the regulators, the investor and the financiers and insurers on one table to find solution to this challenge which is retarding the growth of the Nigerian maritime industry, which of course has hindered development and exploitation of the Nigeria’s blue economy resources”.
Dr. Charles Okerefe in his Goodwill message remarked that “I had hoped to see a lot of representatives of banks at this conference. Our banks are not making long term investments in Shipping, but rather in short terms, quick returns investments and this is not helping the maritime industry. How have we sold the benefits derivable from Shipping financing to the banks?”, He queried.
Dr. Okerefe said that Ship building is not a job for the boys and feels that Nigerian banks are too weak to invest in Ship building. He added ” Conscious efforts should be made to motivate the banks especially the tier ‘A’ ones to be part of events like this”.
Temitope Badmus in his presentation opined that the Blue Economy plays a vital role as 90% of commercial activities which contributes about 70% to the global economy are carried out through Shipping. He advocates building of Ships and floating dockyards along the various cities of the coastal areas of the country.
Abdulkadir Ahmed, the MD/CEO of the NSLM dealt with several areas of Shipping financing and administration and pointed out that “The theme of this year’s conference, which focuses on the key role of finance and insurance in the maritime industry, especially on how they impact the vessel acquisition and construction (newbuild) activities is quite apt and pertinent especially with increased focus on deepening the contribution of marine and blue economy’s contribution to economic growth. Vessel ownership and acquisition occurs within 2 segments of the shipping industry – The Sales and Purchase segment where second-hand vessels are traded and acquired, and the Newbuilding market where newbuild vessels are constructed from scratch. Irrespective of the market owners play in, the importance and role of finance cannot be overemphasised. According to the Petrofin Index for Global Ship Finance, the top 40 banks lending to shipping in 2023 was US$284.27bn, the total global bank lending of all banks, including local banks approached US$375bn in 2023. whilst a cautious and indicative figure for global ship finance, including all forms of lending – leasing, export finance and alternative providers – is approximately US$600bn. These amounts are huge and significant and underscore the key roles of financial institutions including insurance institutions in the acquisition, construction and operations of vessels globally”.
Mr. Ahmed went further to detail several factors that can enhance the development and growth of the industry in Nigeria.
Effiong Ekanem Attah also of the NSLM made a powerpoint presentation on the process of ship building and acquisition. He noted that the process of Ship building follows four steps which include: Specification, Plan Approval, Site Supervision and Trial. He opined that “In Ship building, the bigger, the better, but too big will limit the Ship’s access to certain Ports”. He went further to explain a whole lot of the technical aspects of the processes.
Mr. Effiong added that it takes between $190 million to $270 million to acquire a Ship as at this moment.
Captain John Okakpu while giving a goodwill message said that “The maritime sector is a very big untapped industry in Nigeria. Nigerian products are not competitive in the international market because of the multiplicity of regulatory agencies that drive up costs”. He suggested that “We should open up a direct shipping line to the US as we have none now”.
Mr. Isichei Osamgbi who represented the DG NIMASA in his presentation said that one of the greatest energisers in the economy in the world is shipping. He went through the various efforts put in by his agency in conjunction with other agencies in the areas of training of seafarers and the general development of the maritime sector. He emphasised that we needed to put those things in place such that when we begin to acquire vessels, we will see those who will manage those vessels and be able to deliver dividends to the country in the areas of Ship/Vessel acquisition and construction.
Comptroller Dera Nnadi in his remarks noted that “There cannot be International trade without vessels and so also can there not be coastal trade locally without vessels”. He recalled the efforts made by the Nigeria Customs Service in the area of barge operation which initially was an attempt yo decongest the roads, but that it has steadily grown far beyond that. CAC Nnadi opined that if Nigerians cannot acquire the big vessels, the smaller ones which can be built locally should be acquired to develop the industry.
Virtually everyone who spoke called for concerted efforts by all to take the necessary decisions and make the right investments by putting their money into the maritime sector.
They equally admonished the financial sector to do more by making available the needed funds for the construction/acquisition of vessels so that the desired development and growth of the maritime sector can be achieved.
For advertisement and more information, please contact us on 08027590195, 08035721540 or email us at [email protected] or send us messages on x @dn_utomi or on Instagram @utomidili.
