Mr. Peter Cole Chiori, the CEO of Ocean Glory Commodities Limited is a Nigerian shipping and trading professional, an entrepreneur par excellence and philanthropist whose rise on lifes ladder of success has been through hard work, diligence and integrity.

Though he started his entrepreneurial journey at a young age, his ability to persevere and apply lessons learnt from losses and gains has seen him build a business empire with interests in maritime logistics, commodities trading, agriculture and entertainment.

A graduate of Public Administration from the Lagos State University, he also bagged a masters degree in Business Management from Rochville University, USA. The quest to become a reference point in his industry took him to Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) where he further obtained a post graduate diploma as well as a masters degree in supply chain management, and transport and logistics management respectively.

Having worked in a number of reputable shipping companies where he was solely responsible for the daily running of the shipping and freight forwarding departments, he has been able to bring his experience to bear by ensuring that strategic planning and tactical execution are applied in the management of complex shipping processes, which in turn has delivered new generation solutions.

Ocean Glory Commodities Limited started in 2006 with business interests in shipping, freight forwarding, cargo handling, vessels chartering, warehousing, customs brokerage and exportation of cash crops. Over the years, we have been able to harness the expertise of professionals on our management team to achieve excellence in our 15 years of existence which has earned us a trail of satisfied clients, a high profile in the maritime industry, enviable international business partnerships and relationships, certifications, accreditations and awards. Our ability to also diversify into other businesses has equally helped us to thrive over the years. Other subsidiaries of the company are Ocean Global Impex Services Limited, Ocean Trans and Trading Limited and Korrgreen Farms Limited, he informed.

Commenting on the challenges faced in the maritime industry, Chiori expressed dissatisfaction with the state of the access road to the port which has become a constant pain for importers and exporters as it contributes to the delay of vessels at the port, which ultimately results in the payment of huge demurrage.
According to him, Ours is a growing economy but unfortunately, we dont have enough resources to accommodate the growth. Presently, the Apapa port is congested and I think the government should have forecast that this time would come, because we shouldnt be relying on one port at this point in time. Even the Lekki Deep Seaport that is coming up would only ease the pressure at Apapa for a few years, because they are already overwhelmed based on their forecast, yet they havent commenced operations.

The access road needs to be looked into as a matter of urgency because the pressure to pay demurrage on vessels is enough to weaken the naira. Moving goods to and from the port is a constant pain because the road is bad. A distance that shouldnt take more than 40 minutes to the port, now takes up to one week just to pick up containers and when the trailers eventually load at the port, some bottlenecks would still cause some delays, so by the time you put into account the 21 days required to pick up a container and drop off at the port, it is no longer realistic. This is one of the major factors that contributes to the payment of demurrage on vessels.

Many businesses have collapsed because they can no longer keep up, because when you increase prices, the smugglers would provide a cheap alternative, he stressed.

A member of the Lagos Pilotage Districts Berthing Committee of Nigeria, Chiori harped on the need for terminal operators at the port to improve on their operations which to some extent would also help remove some bottlenecks and reduce delays experienced at the port. In his words, I think when the terminals were privatised, there was no proper consultation on how to manage private ports, because there are lots of lapses which have affected cost of cargo deliveries. The first come, first serve policy of the NPA is not being followed most times because some of these operators are running the port like a personal property. For me, handing over the terminals to people who are vast in cargo handling should have been one of the criteria considered in the privatization process. Having said that, I believe they can still reassess their performances and improve on their operations.”

Driven by the passion to create opportunities especially for the Nigerian youths, Chiori recently moved into agriculture with the establishment of Korrgreen Farms Limited which has acquired 200 hectares of land in Oyo State where soybeans, sesame seeds and rice paddy are being cultivated. He also seats on the board of Achievas Entertainment, a company which has been responsible for hosting some of the biggest concerts in Nigeria. These includes, Olamide Live In Concert (OLIC) and Davidos 30 Billion Concert.

A humble and generous giver, he has impacted many lives positively through the payment of hospital bills for some people with chronic diseases as well as routine sponsorship for the less privileged through academic scholarships and provision of basic needs.

He is a recipient of notable awards which spans the shores of Nigeria. Some of these awards include; African Summit Award London: Entrepreneur of the year 2018(Trans/Logistics), United Nations Ambassador for Peace, Nigerian Transport Leader Award 2018, NIMASA indigenous Shipping Company of the year 2017 and US State of Georgia House of Representatives Business Award 2021.