‘Berthing of larger vessels in Lagos will reduce freight costs, boost economy’

The Managing Director of Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) Nigeria Limited, Andrew Lynch, berthing larger container vessels berth at the country’s seaports would bring significant economic benefits to the country.

He stated this following the successful berthing of MSC MAUREEN, the largest container ship, at Tincan Island Container Terminal Limited (TICT), Lagos, last week.

Recall that the vessel, which sailed under the flag of Panama, is a 6,750 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) container ship with a draught of 12 metres, length overall of 300 metres and beam of 40 metres.

Lynch noted that in addition to the economies of scale that the large vessel brings, it will also boost Nigeria’s export drive as it will depart the shores of the country with export commodities meant for the international market.

“This feat will help us reduce the cost and create economies of scale for importers and exporters. Tin Can and Apapa ports remain very important for the Nigerian economy. If larger vessels come here, it will be a great benefit to everyone.

“We have seen that we can do it and this will make Lagos more competitive because the larger the vessel, the lower the freight rate becomes in terms of imports and exports,” Lynch said.

Also speaking, the Chief Operations Officer of TICT, Edward Ancly, described the berthing of the vessel at the terminal as a great achievement.

“It is a major change in our operation. It is the first time we would see a 300 metres length overall vessel coming into Lagos port, so it is going to give more capacity to the shipping lines and bring more business to Nigeria,” he said.

Port Manager, Tin-Can Island Port Complex, Buba Jubril, commended officials of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) for working together with the ship crew, terminal operator, and other relevant stakeholders to successfully berth the ship.

He assured all shipping companies, importers and exporters doing business at the port, of prompt, efficient and professional service always.

On his part, the Deputy Comptroller of Customs in charge of enforcement at the Tin Can Island Port Command of the Nigeria Customs Service, Aliyu Gambo, said the successful berthing of the ship will translate to more revenue for the Federal Government.