Nigeria to save $200m from in-country discharge of petroleum products

MRS commissions largest jetty in Africa

The newly completed jetty, belonging to MRS Oil Plc is expected to help Nigeria save over $200 million, which would have been spent for various charges in offshore loading of petroleum products.

The berthing terminal – Dantata Jetty, has the capacity to berth vessels of 80,000 to120,000 metric tonnes (MT) at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos.The jetty, which has been described as the largest in Africa, according to the Chairman of MRS, Sayyu Dantata, has the capacity to discharge over I20,000MT vessels.

Speaking at the commissioning of the MRS Jetty and the arrival of 80,000 metric tonnes vessel in Lagos yesterday, Dantata said: “We have been working quietly to rehabilitate and expand the jetty since the unfortunate barge explosion. We made a deliberate decision to rebuild our jetty to meet international standards.”

He said over the years, the company has diligently put in all its time and overcame challenges to get to this point. “With our capability to berth larger vessels, we can conveniently save for the country over $200 million yearly currently being wasted due to ship-to-ship operations, shallow drafts and delays,” he added.

According to him, before the construction of the jetty, the company could only bring small vessels of 10,000 – 30,000 metric tonnes capacity to berth and discharge products at the depot.

Sayyu said with the completion of the jetty, a vessel of 60,000MT capacity is already at the facility, adding that the capacity is equivalent to six vessels of 10,000MT tones each.

“Also speaking at the occasion, Group Executive Director, MRS, Amina Maina, said the jetty could only accommodate 25,000MT prior to the explosion at the terminal, adding that after rebuilding the jetting, it can effectively discharge more products.

The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu commended the company for surmounting all the economic challenges and making the completion of the vessel a reality.

Kachikwu said he had a similar vision for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), stressing that as the leader in the downstream sector, the NNPC Downstream should adopt similar computerisation scheme to reduce losses in its operations.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babartunde Raji Fashola, reiterated government’s commitment to provide enabling environment for business to thrive. “Nigeria has suffered in the last few years and the local firms remained and continue to look out for ways to remain in business.

“That is fantastic; it is important that we get the NNPC to align with this strategy to reduce losses,” Kachikwu added.