Shippers Council Ends Arbitrary Charges By Shipping Lines, Terminal Operators In Nigeria

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Barr Hassan Bello, former Executive Secretary of Nigerian Shippers Council

The Nigerian Shippers’ Council has commenced the process to adjust port tariffs and charges to end imposition and arbitrary tariffs and charges by port terminals and shipping lines in Nigeria

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council Hassan Bello disclosed this during a recent parley with terminal operators and shipping lines in Lagos.

Recall that Association of Shipping Line Operators (ASLA) as well as Terminal Operators had dragged Shippers Council to court, contesting its powers to set and regulate tariff for port operations.

The Council however organised this recent parley as a result of excessive increase in cost from service providers.

Represented by the Director, Regulatory Services, Ifeora Ezedinma, Bello said the actions of the service providers have negatively impacted the country’s economy and overall performance of the maritime sector.

“This will help to instill a culture of transparency in the cost of services charged by service providers and in the process of addressing the issues of arbitrary charges inherent in the industry. It will also help to keep the council abreast of the daily trends of tariffs, rates, charges and performance of service providers,” Bello said.

However, the stakeholders called on the Council to align the guidelines with the Nigeria Port Authority (NPA) to ensure its smooth operations and canvassed for the inclusion of an arbitration mechanism to ensure future business misgivings in the sector are well managed.

The council gave a two weeks window to stakeholders to study and come up with recommendations on the implementation of a new guideline on tariff setting.

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