To prevent further heavy Financial losses due to demurrage—as well as put an end to incessant fuel crisis in the country—the Federal Government has directed the Energy Ministry to ensure that All facilities for receiving and offloading Petroleum Products were fully restored.
Specifically, Aso Rock was said to have directed that the Atlas Cove Jetty in Takwa Bay, Lagos , which was gutted by fire on three occasions in 2003, 2004 and early 2006, be restored.
THISDAY reported two months ago that Nigeria had lost billions of Naira to payments for demurrage as a result of Limited facilities for the reception of fuel imports.
The Atlas Cove jetty which is the Major receiving depot in the country has not been restored to full Standard not withstanding the repair work carried Out on it after the fire incident.
But worried by the over N55 billion incurred on demurrage in less than two years, due to Limited import reception facilities for landed vessels carrying imported petrol, Government was said to have directed that the strategic depot be fixed to full Standard .
The Minister of State for Energy , Odein Ajumogobia, SAN, is billed to visit Lagos tomorrow to conduct an assessment of the facility, with a view to ascertaining the extent of Repairs already carried Out and what is needed to fully restore the jetty, from where petrol Products Are supplied to Ejigbo and Mosimi depots.
A highly placed source told THISDAY yesterday that the Minister and his team, comprising the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) would be visiting the Kaduna REFINERY today from where they will arrive Lagos Thursday on an inspection tour of the Atlas Cove jetty.
The source explained that the country’s Total demand is about 30 million litres per day while the refineries at full capacity can produce only about 18 million litres. He said with this production capacity, there is still going to be a shortfall of about 12 million litres, which means the country will still rely on imports to meet the shortfall.
According to him, fixing Nigeria ’s largest depot became necessary in view of Government ’s decision to prevent further loss of money on demurrage.
The source said the NNPC carried Out some repair Works on the jetty, but that only skeletal operation is still taking place as the jetty has not been returned to the required Standard , a Development which, he said, results in the delay in offloading of landed vessels.
Confirming the tour of the facilities in a telephone interview yesterday, the General Manager Group Public Affairs of the NNPC, Dr. Levi Ajuonuma, explained that the visit became necessary to enable the minister see the enormity of the problem and what is needed to bring the facilities back to their required Standard .
He confirmed that the jetty underwent Repairs after the fire incident, but that it is yet to be brought to be fully ready.
“The Atlas Cove Jetty, you know is the most strategic depot and our only channel of import. The repair work has not been to the Standard we need. So the minister is going there to see to himself what has been done. The visit will make him to appreciate the enormity of the problem and what to do, so that he can in turn brief the Federal Government ,” he said.
Ajuonuma who blamed the State of the facilities on incessant vandalism of pipelines, assured that efforts were in progress to stem the tide.
Vandalism of petrol pipelines had resulted in pipeline explosions which had claimed so many lives. Between 1998 and last year, no fewer than 5,000 died in these tragedies, which also resulted in loss valuable Property were lost to these tragic incidents.
The Warri and Kaduna Refineries had been shut down since February 2005, when restive youths from the Niger Delta region vandalized the Chanomi Creek pipeline.
Consequently, the country has since then depended on importation of petrol to meet its National Daily fuel demand which is put at 30 million litres.
The Minister of Petroleum had last month stated that his priority was to ensure that All the four refineries Are brought back to full operation to ensure availability of Products for domestic use.
To achieve this aim, the Government has awarded a contract of about $52 million for the repair of the Chanomi Creek Pipeline, main feeder pipeline that supplies crude to Warri and Kaduna Refineries, which was blown up by Niger Delta militants in the wake of the Niger Delta crisis.
The GMD NNPC who disclosed this had noted that the Port Harcourt, Kaduna , and Warri Refineries Are All technically sound, and attributed their Low performance to the vandalism of the Chanomi Creek pipeline. He had assured that the refineries would be performing at their optimum capacity by December when the repair work was completed.
In the wake of the December 2006 fuel crisis, the NNPC, due to Limited import reception facilities resorted to the use some private import reception facilities for about three months to enable landed vessels with imported Products to offload.
Some of the facilities belonged to Mrs, Obat Oil , Folawiyo Petroleum , Wabeco and Total , All in Lagos and Oando facility in Onne, River State .