NPA Has Not Increased Port Charges for 30 years, says Bello-Koko

The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mohammed Bello-Koko has said that the Authority has not increased its changes since 1993, which is 30 years ago.

Bello-Koko revealed on TVC business segment recently that it was Towage Services that the Authority reviewed sometime around 2012 or 2014.

According to him, “The NPA has not increased its tariff since 1993. The rates that we have been using since 1993 are still the same rate that we are using today.

“The last time the NPA increased its tariff was in 1993. Yes, the cost of doing business at the ports may be high, but we have not increased our tariff in the last 30 years.

“It was in 2012 or 2014 that the NPA Increased the cost of Towage. Every other tariff has remained as it is since 1993.

“The cost of doing business could be increasing, but it’s not attributable to the tariff and rates of the NPA.

“What we did in 2012 was to harmonize the tariffs and merge them because they were so many. Before then, if anybody is looking for our tariffs, they will find many tariffs broken into pieces. So what we did then was to merge them.”

On port construction, the NPA MD said the situation at Tin-Can Port is the worst even though every other port needs some level of rehabilitation too.

“What we have been doing is palliative work, trying to manage the situation. However, it has now gotten to a stage where we feel palliative works are no longer tenable.

“So what we have done is an Authority-wide NEED assessment where we checked those infrastructures. After that, we decided that it is time we fully reconstruct those infrastructures.

“Tin-Can Port is the one that is in a worst state, very terrible. We believe it is time to reconstruct and rehabilitate Tin-Can Port.

“There are some Quays at other ports too that need rehabilitation. Some Quays in Apapa, Warri, Calabar, Onne, and virtually all the ports need rehabilitation. “Our assessment showed that we need about 800m Dollars to rehabilitate all the ports