Business
NLNG To Build Dockyard In Badagry
The Nigerian Lique
fied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited, Bonny Rivers State, has announced plans to build a vessel dockyard worth $1.6 billion at Badagry, Lagos.
NLNG’s, Managing Director, Mr. Baba Omotowa disclosed this during an interactive investors forum held in Lagos, recently.
Omotowa said the company’s efforts were geared towards arresting capital flight in the Oil and Gas, and Maritime sectors of the nation’s economy.
He said the feasibility study carried out by Royal Haskoning DHV an independent, international engineering and project management consultancy with its headquarters in Netherlands indentified seven suitable locations for the building of the dockyard.
The NLNG boss explained that the seven locations identified were – Badagry, Lekki FTZ, Lado/Island Ogogoro Island, Olokola FTZ, Onne, Bonny but the consultants settled for Budagry, Lagos as the best –in – class location for the dockyard.
He said about 600 Nigerians youths are being trained in various aspects of ship – building, procurement of goods and other beneficial areas to promote the Nigerian economy.
Omotowa stressed that towards achieving such lofty initiative, the company had already reached out to the investment community, banks and other financial institutions aimed at promoting the potential for a new dockyard in the country.
He said the absence of an operational dockyard has long been lamented in the nation’s Maritime sector, stressing that the existing dockyard can only handle smaller vessels and not large crude carriers (VLCCs) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.
He said lack of such a facility has meant that owners of large vessel in Nigeria and some countries in the West African region have had to pay large sums of money to lacking facilities located mainly in Asia, Europe and the Americas.
He explained that LNG Vessels and very large crude carriers (VLCC) are currently maintained oversea resulting in millions of dollars being spent overseas on such vessels, adding that upon completion of the dockyard in the country such vessels and VLCC would be maintained in country with tangible value – adds for the nation’s economy.
The Tide learnt that the Nigeria LNG currently had 13 operational vessels in its fleet while waiting to receive six additional vessels from Sambung Henvy Industries and Hyundai Heavy Industries, the designers and makers of the vessels with a pledge of home-based maintenance.
Philip Okparaji