Indigenous shipowners recently raised the alarm that foreign shipowners set questionable parameters to scheme out local operators from participating in Ship to Ship (STS) transfer in the nation’s coastal water.
Speaking in a chat with the former Lagos State Coordinator, Nigerian Shipowners Association (NISA), Captain Taiwo Akinpelumi, said if the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), certify vessels for coastal operation, foreign shipowners shouldn’t set questionable parameters.
Capt. Akinpelumi who is also the head of Operations & Logistics, Oceanic Energy Limited, stated that the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy should ensure that any vessel with NIMASA certificate for STS operation shouldn’t be rejected by foreign vessels.
“Foreign vessels owners bring other vessels to do STS and they come up with questionable requests that is not applicable in our waters. For instance, if NIMASA has certified any vessel to be seaworthy, foreign vessels have no right to say a vessel is not sea worthy because it is the responsibility of the flag administration to regulate standards of a vessel. The modern vessels set parameters to scheme out the local operators.” Adding that indigenous operators have capacity to lift crude and also perform STS successfully.
“The problems emanated from the inability of indigenous operators to have access to contracts from Major Oil Companies including NNPC. Major Oil companies fail to patronize indigenous operators. If major Oil companies like NNPC decides to give contracts to indigenous operators to provide vessels, with the contracts taken to the bank, the banks seeing that there is cargo will be able to stake their money in financing them.
“Practice makes perfect, if they are saying local operators doesn’t have capacity, it is not right. We need to keep doing something to build capacity because there are some local operators who are personally managing their freight and they are doing it excellently well,” the shipowner who pleaded anonymity stated.
He continued, “A situation whereby we say indigenous operators’ vessels are not good, they are rust bucket, not sea worthy but, when there is no cargo, when they lack contract, how will they compete?” he asked rhetorically.
“Vessel is built and bought to finance, take care and maintain itself. It is the money that comes from the services provided that they use to look after the vessel. The indigenous operators are deprived contracts. Foreign vessels owners bring other vessels to do Ship to Ship (STS) transfer, and they come up with questionable requests that is not applicable in our waters,” he stated.
Capt. Akinpelumi lamented that if indigenous operators have capacity, Nigeria won’t be spending much in training of Seafarers abroad. ‘If indigenous players are giving exclusivity to the cargoes, all the seafarers training abroad will stop and they will be able to approach indigenous operators to say we will give you incentives, train 5 or 10 cadets for us. We can’t train cadets without vessels and that’s the area to look in because when seafarers are gainfully employed and working, they will pay taxes, royalty to their home country,’ he said.