High cost of operations, expensive operating environment and other miscellaneous factors may prompt the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company plc (nahcoaviance), to increase tariff on cargo handling in the next few weeks, BusinessDay has learnt.
Sources close to the company said it is already considering a stakeholders’ meeting where issues relating to the plan would be discussed extensively to give credence to it.
It was gathered that the company associated the increase with the recent devaluation of the naira and other factors arising from the exchange rate, as ground handling equipment are imported by the company.
“The environment is now very expensive to operate, coupled with the high exchange rate and other charges being paid to aviation agencies, we may be compelled to increase our charges,” the source said. Cargoes are weighed in tonnage and the fees collected by other agencies such as the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and others, are embedded into the amount that may be charged by NAHCO.
BusinessDay gathered that the company, which has reached an advanced stage of introducing the new charges regime, would also discuss with licensed and customs agents under the auspices of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANCLA) and National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) in a bid to intimate them of the intended tariff.
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“The increase is also seen as making a comparison with tariffs in West Africa,” a source close to the ground handlers said.
Speaking further, he said apart from the general operating environment, the ground handlers who pay concession fees to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) still invest heavily in the provision of security and alternative power supply to run their numerous ground support equipment.
“A new price regime was introduced in 2012. They also believe that the industry being a highly regulated one, it could not afford to cut corners with the current low tariffs.
Meanwhile, the porosity of the cargo shed area of the Murtala Muhammed Airport is becoming a threat to cargo clearance as the place is now open to anybody without a security check.
The security measure put in place by FAAN after a fracas ensued between clearing agents and Customs officers which led to the closure of the cargo terminal for two weeks, has suddenly disappeared as the place is now accessible to both authorised and unauthorised persons.
“People just stroll in and out of the area, you don’t know who is who, anybody can pretend to be going to the post office or any other company around that area but in fact, they have nothing doing in that area but to waylay people and constitute a nuisance.
“They are now making things more difficult for officers who have work to do because sometimes one can’t differentiate among them; they enter the cargo area claiming they want to clear goods for clients but that is against the new rule,” a source familiar with that area said.
He called on FAAN to secure the main entry into the cargo area adding that once they (unauthorised persons) cannot gain entry through that area, there will be sanity.
Sade Williams
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