Why We Extended Port Concession Period – BPE, NPA

The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) have explained why some port terminal operators were granted concession extension, saying that the process was legal and followed due process.

This is coming against the backdrop of the furore over the extension among the port industry stakeholders, most of who have argued that it was illegally conducted.

The beneficiaries of the port terminal extension are; ENL Consortium Ltd; Tin-Can Island Container Terminal (TICT); Josephdam; Port and Cargo Handling Services Ltd; African Maritime Services(AMS); Port and Terminal Operators Limited (PTOL); Ecomarine Terminals Limited.

They were granted extension by five years ahead of expiration of their present concession agreement.

Speaking with MMS Plus in Abuja, a management staff of BPE, who pleaded anonymity, said, “There were different reasons for each of the terminal operators who benefitted from the concession agreement extension. While I may not go giving you details on each of them, I would like to say that the extension followed due process. It was done by NPA and BPE under the supervision of the National Council of Privatization (NCP) headed by the Vice-President. It was through a lot of process. First, through the technical committee and then the sub-committee on privatization, and there were legally done.

Reacting to a statement credited to the Director of Transport in BPE that the Bureau was not aware of the concession period extension, the source stated, “He is not saying the truth. Not even the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) can also claim that they were not aware because they are part of the NCP.”

Recall that the Director-General of ICRC, Mallam Aminu Dikko had said that the commission was not informed of the extension.

Earlier too, the Managing Director of the NPA, Mallam Habib Abdullahi, had told MMS Plus via a phone chat that the“extension was transparently and procedurally done.”

“If BPE said they were not aware, where is the office of the NCP? It is domiciled in Maitama office of BPE and the Vice-president, is the chairman. So, somebody is not telling you the truth,”Habib added.

On why the extension was granted, the source, who declined to be specific sighted a case at Tin-Can Island Port, where the Nigeria Customs Services (NCS) converted a large chunk of the terminal’s land for revenue collection and almost ten years after the concession agreement they could not vacate the premises, yet the terminal had made payment as required, explaining that it is commonsensical that such terminal operator should get extension to cover the gap.

Other reasons earlier advanced by NPA for the extension include, wrong surveys in the terminals at the initial delineation, computation of throughput on export laden and empty containers and relocation of terminal.

NPA was said to have reneged on some of the terms of concession agreement, some of which include, provision of power, security, water and other sundry services. However, terminal operators provide virtually these services themselves.

On the indebtedness of the concessionaries to the Federal Government, the BPE source admitted that the terminal operators have made efforts at making huge investment in the sector, a process that involved huge credit facilities from financial institution yet unpaid, and as such should be given some consideration because of the unfriendly business climate in the country.

“Some of them got credit facilities at the time dollar was exchanged at N