NIMASA calls for urgent review of terms of freighting Nigeria’s crude oil, gas from FOB to CIF
Oredola Adeola
Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has called for the review of the terms of freighting of crude oil and gas products from Free on Board (FOB) to Cost Insurance and Freight (CIF) to create opportunities for the rapid growth of the maritime sector.
Dr. Bashir Jamoh, Director General, NIMASA made this known at the just concluded Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF), organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state.
According to him, the terms of trade with regard to the transportation of Nigerian crude oil and liquified natural gas will ensure that the country derives maximum benefits from its petroleum resources.
He hinted that Nigeria has no control over the delivery of its crude oil as regards carriage, insurance, and other ancillary services under FOB trade terms.
The NIMASA boss noted that CIF arrangement would enable Nigeria to have full control over the transportation of its oil and gas resources, which will also engender competition among indigenous ship owners and their partners.
Dr. Jamoh, who was represented at the event also emphasised the importance of the oil and gas industry to drive the economy and industrialisation of the country and said that the two commodities are cheaper and the efficient.
He said, “It has accelerated global transportation and reshaped the economy, thereby boosting activities in the maritime sector. Oil and gas are the major traded global commodities, and they remained the major revenue earner.
“While there have been some forms of renewable energy sources being initiated in recent years, all have proven to be more expensive and inaccessible compared to oil and gas, “the NIMASA DG said.
Dr. Jamoh, however, noted that the sector has both direct and indirect consequences, but affirmed the pressure on the country to abandon investment in the oil and gas industry, is a call for disaster, since the country earns over 90 percent of its revenue from the sector.
He said, ” The oil and gas sector is incredibly critical to stimulating the country’s economic growth. The level of growth in the industrial and commercial space of Nigeria is due to the contributions of the oil & gas and transportation sectors.
Speaking on the planned commissioning of the Dangote refinery, Jamoh said that the new refinery will provide the country the opportunity to optimize the usage of these resources.
He said, “This would save put the country at a better advantage as a leading producer of crude oil as well as help the country to conserve its foreign exchange that could have gone into importation of petroleum products.
“It will also help the country to produce sufficient crude oil for in-country refining and offer the opportunity to open up the maritime sector to the exportation of refined petroleum products within the continent and the European and Asian market.
Dr. Jamoh however commended the NCDMB for the front-end design of the Brass Island shipyard project of sufficient size to handle the repair and maintenance requirements of marine vessels of various sizes including container ships, oil tankers, and LNG carriers.
According to him, this would help ship owners in the country to reduce the cost of servicing and repairing their vessels outside the country.
