The Association of Bonded Terminal Operators of Nigeria has expressed concern over the threat to investments in indigenous bonded terminal operations, citing the inadequate integration of local content into the Federal Government’s 2006 port concession policy.
The General Secretary of ABTON, Haruna Omolajomo, highlighted the deteriorating state of bonded terminal operations in Nigeria, attributing the decline to the 2006 port concession policy.
He said this recently in Lagos at the 2024 Portnews Summit, themed “Port Reforms and Local Content: Has Nigeria Fared Well?”
Omolajomo, who is also the managing director of Harsecom Logistics Limited, painted a bleak picture of an industry grappling with neglect and marginalization.
“From 2001 to 2008, bonded terminals contributed over N1bn annually to government revenue, operating at 80-100 per cent capacity. Today, that contribution has dropped to N300m annually, with most terminals running at less than five per cent capacity,” he lamented.
Despite their past contributions, Omolajomo said bonded terminal operators had been sidelined since the 2006 concessions, which favoured foreign concessionaires offering door-to-door services.
He described that as economic sabotage, noting that five of the 25 bonded terminal operators active in 2006 had closed due to crippling debts.
Omolajomo warned that without intervention, bonded terminal operations in Nigeria could face extinction.
“The port reforms have failed to foster the growth of local content; instead, they have led to economic recolonisation,” he said.
He called on the Federal Government to review its agreements with concessionaires to safeguard local content and protect the investments of indigenous operators.
In his welcome address, the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of PortNews, Wale Oni, acknowledged the role of off-dock terminals and inland container depots in alleviating port congestion.
He also discussed the effects of the 2004-2006 port reforms under President Olusegun Obasanjo, which privatised key port terminals, handing control to foreign concessionaires.
Oni criticised those reforms for marginalising Nigerian-owned bonded terminals and ICDs.
Earlier, the Chairman of Integrated Oil and Gas Ltd, Captain Emmanuel Iheanacho, said the port reform process, which began in 2005, had helped to attract private sector investments in port and terminal operations equipment and processes, improved infrastructure, and increased efficiency.
He added that local content development in the maritime sector had been slower to take off.
“Challenges include Limited capacity and expertise among local companies – High costs and limited access to finance – Difficulty in competing with established foreign companies Progress and Challenges,” he said.
