Amidst Apapa Gridlock, Shipping Lines Introduce Post-Container Refunds Charges

By ZION Olalekan |

Nigerian importers have raised an alarm over a fresh scheme by shipping lines to extort money by allegedly introducing a new charge known as post container deposit demurrage charges.

Investigations by nigeriamaritime360@gmail.com shows that it is collected by shipping companies immediately the statutory container deposits paid by the importer is exhausted and the container is yet to be returned.

Speaking with our correspondent at the port yesterday, one of the victims of the new scheme, Mr. Pius Davis, Managing Director of Ubulu Maritime alleged that one of the shipping companies, GAC Shipping is charging him N1,12,00,000 as container refund after the N100,000 he deposited was exhausted.

Davis claimed that his importer had taken delivery of his container and subsequently returned the container in two days. He however lamented that due to the ever present traffic gridlock leading to the nations’ port, precisely the Tin Can Island Port, the container could not get inside the Tin Can Island Container Terminal (TICT).

Pius lamented that the major challenge facing port operators now is that container deposits are no longer refunded by shipping companies due to delays experienced in the long queue of Apapa traffic.

Speaking, the Ubulu Maritime boss confirmed that “I am the agent who has the contract from the importer and I did the job, under three days, the empty container was returned to the port, we didn’t know what happened. But the shipping company is now saying that the container didn’t get to the port because of lack of holding bay on the part of the shipping company which they are supposed to provide.

“The container deposit they normally collect is dropped by the agent in case of you not returning the container on-time, we deposited that money and it has been deducted. The same shipping company is now charging us and counting demurrages on what we do not know and we are not supposed to be the provider of Truck Park.

“The name of the shipping company is GAC Nigeria Limited. The container was cleared at Bollore Terminal at Kirikiri phase 2, but the empty container is supposed to be returned to TICT.

“We dropped N100, 000 as container deposit, when they finished deducting it, they are now charging us N1,12,00,000.

What they are saying is that we should come and pay demurrage accrued for the period of which the empty stayed on the truck in a gridlock”, he lamented.

Davis lamented that part of challenges confronting port operators is that containers stay on trucks for two to three days without being dropped at the terminals.

He said “Shipping companies under normal circumstances should have their holding bays, but now they don’t have it, and because of the bad roads, container would stay on top of a truck for months before having access to the port. This is a port where the federal government has sold out virtually all the space, so where do you have to drop containers?”

Our correspondent in an attempt to get more insight into the matter placed a call to the Managing Director of TICT, Mr. Ettiene Rocher, but he never picked up. Also, efforts to reach the management of GAC shipping has proved abortive.

At a stakeholders meeting held at the Apapa Command of Nigeria Customs Service recently, scores of operators at the meeting also raised alarm on the collection of post container deposit charges.

One of the stakeholders who identified himself as General Manager of DENCA Bonded Terminal said that shipping lines no longer return container deposits to agents.

He said “No agent here will tell you that he collects container refunds again, nobody collects container refunds, no matter what you deposited and this is not helping the Nigerian economy.

“Sometimes, the money we pay for transportation of cargoes is more that the amount we pay for duties on cargoes, this is the situation now”.

On his part, another stakeholder, Mr. Jonathan Owoh in a chat with our correspondent yesterday alleged that this collection is also being done at MSC Shipping Company. He alleged that MSC shipping have kick-started collection of provisional demurrage of N200,000 even though an importer has 21 days free to pick his container and bring it back to the port

According to him “Getting refunds from shipping companies is now very cumbersome, they give a lot of conditions, as I speak with you now, I have about eighteen refunds to collect, N200,000 per container. Every day, the shipping lines place one impediment or the other to frustrate the agent from getting their refund.

“Sometimes they will tell you that you are not the importer, at MSC shipping, they will only pay back into the account of the importer, meanwhile when you are paying it, they will not ask if you are the importer, in most cases, it is the agent that owns that money.

“Most of the importers do not have bank accounts, they issue you cheques”.