The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) has issued a Certificate of Compliance for an outline Business Case (OBC) to enable the operation of the Modular Floating Dockyard acquired by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
Michael Ohiani, acting director-general of ICRC, presented the certificate when he led a team of ICRC officials to the NIMASA headquarters in Lagos.
Ohiani said the Modular Floating Dockyard will be operated, maintained, and transferred under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement in compliance with the ICRC Act 2005 and the National Policy on PPP.
Bashir Jamoh, director-general of NIMASA, who received the Certificate of Compliance, said the Modular Floating Dockyard was a national asset.
According to him, the Agency was committed to the deployment of the dry dock in line with relevant regulatory instruments to ensure wealth and job creation, as well as revenue generation for the Federal Government.
He said that issues such as security, accessibility, and existing infrastructure were considered in the development of a business case for the dockyard, which will be managed by NIMASA, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), and a management company.
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Jamoh assured that ICRC would closely monitor the entire implementation process to ensure equity, fairness, and profitability for the Federal Government.
“It is one thing to have the Modular Dockyard, and another for it to enjoy patronage and become profitable. Funds have been invested and it cannot serve as a workshop for an institution of learning, as being inferred in some quarters. We have confirmed that the dockyard cannot berth at an area earlier proposed for it. We got approval from our supervising ministry to deploy the asset on a PPP basis and we are working in conjunction with the NPA. Our arrangement to use facilities at the Continental Shipyard in Apapa is still on course,” he explains.
Jamoh however said that the delay in the deployment of the Floating Dockyard was due to the fact that attention was being paid to due diligence, compliance with due process and the eventual durability of the project when it becomes operational.
Ohiani noted that only deployment based on due diligence and effective implementation of the approved business case would ensure the durability of the project.
“The project is bankable and Nigerian government will get value for money from it. The next step is to get the best concessioner to provide the services and the full business case will be taken to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approval. ICRC will continue to manage the process and we hope to conclude the entire process before the end of the year,” he said.
He added that both parties will ensure that the concessioner does not charge arbitrary fees when it becomes operational.
