APMT jittery over imminent congestion as importers abandon cargo at ports.

Abiola Seun |

As the federal government continued the enforcement of land border ban on Importation and exportation at the land borders, container terminal operator at the Lagos Port, APMT has begged importers and clearing agents to clear their cargoes from the seaports due to rise in container volume.

In a press statement made available to newsmen yesterday by the management of the terminal operators ,APM Terminal said refusal to clear cargoes at the terminal will lead to high yard density which will occasion vessels queue at the terminal.

The terminal operators further acknowledged that the government policy on border closure had led to increase in the volume of cargoes at the terminal.

The statement reads, “We have recently experienced a substantial increase in volume of containers arriving through the seaports. This positive development can be attributed to various positive government policies such as improvement in the implementation of Ease of Doing Business policy, the Agriculture Promotion Policy and closure of land borders to curtail smuggling activities amongst others.

“However, if these containers are not cleared by customers soon enough, this volume increase could lead to high yard density which could impact berthing of vessels resulting in vessel queues. We are anticipating further improvement in throughput ahead of Christmas and year end.”

“We therefore urge all the relevant stakeholders and the wider port community to ensure timely delivery of containers in an effective manner without compromising government’s policies and procedures.”

They also mentioned that the terminal operators would offer discount for containers that have overstayed in the port.

“The terminal is willing to offer discount for longstanding containers commensurate with dwell time and therefore urge customers with containers in this category to take advantage of the offer and take delivery of their containers.

“We commend the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) for operating the Lilypond Transit Truck park and the Presidential Task Team on decongesting Apapa access roads for their effective implementation of the call-up system and traffic management system respectively.”
“As for the terminal, we assure the shipping lines and our landside customers, that we are dedicating adequate resources despite the seasonal bad weather, working closely with the Port authority, other relevant agencies and stakeholders for improved terminal performance to ensure prompt cargo delivery after release by the Nigeria Customs Service.”