APM Terminals Apapa, Nigeria’s largest container terminal, said it has invested a total of $438 million, equivalent to about N180 billion, in the upgrade of its facility, acquisition of modern cargo handling equipment and support of seamless service since it won concession of the terminal in 2006.
According to the terminal operator, the investment is the highest by any port terminal operator in Nigeria.
Steen Knudsen, the terminal manager of APM Terminals Apapa, said the terminal is on an exciting journey of major transformation to deliver greater, sustainable benefits to the Nigerian economy and society.
Aside from the investment in equipment and facility upgrade, he said APM Terminals Apapa is also investing substantially into continuous development of its workforce.
“Since inception, we have invested around $438 million purely into the handling equipment we have in the terminal. We have acquired mobile harbour cranes, rubber tyred gantry cranes, reach stackers, forklifts, terminal trucks, empty handlers and invested into yard improvements,” he said.
Continuing, Knudsen said, “An equally important investment is the investment into our workforce, ensuring that we continuously develop our staff. This covers training, career progression and, of course, expanding the business and creating new jobs.”
Knudsen further disclosed that the company is currently focusing on investing into its facilities by renovating buildings, upgrading in-gate and out-gate facilities, terminal fencing and lighting.
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“We have equipped the parking area access with a facial recognition system and expanded our terminal fleet with new shuttle buses and pickup trucks. Some of our other investments are aimed at simplifying and enhancing trade.
“For a long time, shipping has been a very manual and paper-heavy process. We are using global best practices to introduce digitalised products, in order to ensure that importers and exporters enjoy a seamless service from the terminal,” Knudsen said.
He said the terminal remains committed to deepening its investment in Apapa to enable it to handle increasing volumes at the port.
He added that those investments will create capacity to handle growth in the economy in order to support the Federal Government’s efforts on trade growth and improve service delivery across the logistic chain.
APM Terminals Apapa also recently launched a massive digitisation of its operations and services through the deployment of 4G LTE wireless network, and commissioned its Operation Command Centre to enhance quality service delivery.
