• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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BusinessDay

NIMASA nears CVFF disbursement, change of crude oil trade policy

NIMASA

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), has restated its commitment to the disbursement of the much awaited Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF), an accumulation of the 2 percent contributing funds by indigenous ship owners, to deserving firms.

Speaking at the weekend during a courtesy visit by the Shipping Correspondents Association of Nigeria (SCAN), Dakuku Peterside, director-general of NIMASA, said that all necessary conditions as stipulated by the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, must be met before disbursing the fund.

Peterside, who was represented by Bashir Jamoh, executive director, Finance and Administration, assured that the money was safe, contrary to the assumption that it has been tempered with.

“All I can say categorically is that the money will be disbursed, but I can’t say the particular time because it is not the responsibility of NIMASA to disburse, unless we get directive. We will release it on the instruction of the minister,” he said.

According to Jamoh, the issue of changing crude oil trading policy from Free on Board (FOB) to Cost, Insurance and Freight (CIF) trade terms, will soon become successful to enable indigenous ship owners to benefit from the nation’s crude oil trading.

“We are talking with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and with time, we will have a breakthrough in ensuring that Nigerian ship owners get the right to lift our crude oil. Nigerians are already lifting oil but we cannot unveil those involved. The NNPC has indicated that some of them are already lifting,” He added.

Jamoh disclosed that the agency is taking a lot of measures that are targeted at getting cargo support to ensure that Nigerian owned ships do not lack cargo to lift, if shipping companies successful get the CVFF.

“The cargo support scheme will make government cargo, project cargo and others go through NIMASA as a way of assisting the ship owners, and it will forestall a situation where vessels funded with CVFF have to go searching for cargo to carry,” he said.

Jamoh said: “We are looking at different windows in terms of favourable foreign exchange rate for the ship owners for handling, purchasing, repairing ships.

He further said that the agency remains committed to the ideals of actualising the Blue Economy, which deals with the totality of all economic activity associated with the oceans, seas, harbours and coastal zones.

He listed the concept to include aquaculture, biomedicine, boats and shipbuilding, ship repairs, defense and security, among others all geared towards wealth and job creation for the growth and development of the Nigerian economy.

Jamoh said that NIMASA is ready to ensure a robust maritime sector to include the drafting of a dedicated anti-piracy bill, which is before the National Assembly to provide the requisite framework for the fight, prosecution and punishment of piracy and other related crimes in Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea, if passed into law.

Also, the agency has approval for the acquisition of intelligence gathering maritime domain awareness and military response assets to fight pirates and make Nigerian waters safe for economic activities.

 

Amaka Anagor-Ewuzie