The Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has hinted on its current plans to introduce new policy on freight rate.
The Chairman of the Council’s Sub-Committee on Freight, Otunba Seyi Oduntan, explained that the proposed review of the rate was part of the Council’s efforts to optimise the opportunities of the shipping business for stakeholders.
Speaking during a recent visit to Maersk Line and Grimaldi Line, Oduntan disclosed that the Council had started stakeholders’ engagement on the planned new freight rate, adding that the visit to the multinational shipping companies was mainly to seek their support for the new policy.
According to him, the NSC, as the ports economic regulator, has the mandate to make Nigeria a regional hub in African sub-region, adding that the Council has been working assiduously to achieve this objective.
In their response, the top officials of the multinational shipping agencies in their response lamented that the cost of transporting cargo from the ports had gone up with the attendant negative implications for customers and the nation’s economy.
Even while not totally expressing their opposition to the proposed fiscal measure, the ship owners bemoaned the deplorable state of the roads leading to Apapa as among the challenges undermining their operations.
