By Godfrey Bivbere and Providence Emmanuel

AS part of measures to stop capital flight through dry docking outside the country, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, is to take delivery of the fifth largest modular dockyard in Africa which will save the nation about $100 million annually.

Dakuku Peterside

Speaking in Lagos, Director General/CEO, NIMASA, Dakuku Peterside, said that this will be a direct savings from the dry docking of vessels operating in Nigeria, which are mostly done outside the country at the moment, adding that it is ready to partner the private sector to run the dockyard.

He said, “I am delighted to inform you that NIMASA will soon take delivery of the fifth largest modular floating dockyard on the African continent. This dockyard will save the Federal Government of Nigeria at least 100 million dollars annually.”

The modular floating dockyard, measuring 125metres by 35metres with three in-built cranes, transformers and a number of ancillary facilities, is being built by one of the world’s largest ship building firms, Damen Shipyards and its partner, NIRDA, in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Peterside said: “This will be a direct savings from the dry docking of vessels operating in Nigeria, which are mostly done outside the country at the moment. It is our desire to partner with the private sector to run the dockyard. This is coming as the Presidency granted approval to the agency to acquire assets that will be deployed at strategic locations to enhance its ability to improve the safety of vessels within the nation’s maritime domain.”

He said NIMASA now operates 24-hour surveillance system, which captures all vessels in the Nigerian maritime domain irrespective of weather conditions, stressing that the agency was currently working out modalities to float an anti-piracy bill.