Anxiety As PTML, Five Star Terminals Hike Terminal Handling Charges By 50%
By DAPO OLAWUNI
Two Roll on Roll Off terminals at the Tin Can Island Port; Ports and Terminal Multipurpose Limited (PTML) as well as Five Star Logistics Terminal have increased their terminal handling charges by as much as 50%
DAILY TREND NEWS can report exclusively that the two terminals released the notice simultaneously on Friday, a development which importers and freight forwarders said would bring about inflation in Nigeria.
According to the circular released by both terminal operators, a copy of which was obtained by our correspondent, the increment is expected to take effect from 1st of June 2021.
Both terminals have blamed the increment on inflation in Nigeria, huge operational cost due to nature of Nigerian ports among others.
In the circular by PTML, one of the biggest vehicle terminal in Nigeria, it states that “PTML would like to bring to the attention of its esteem customers that the dramatic surge in inflation in 2020 and 2021 and the ever increasing operational expenses incurred because of the particularly challenging port operational environment have had a huge impact on the company direct cost”
“PTML tariff have not been adjusted for a number of years now, and it has become impossible for the terminal to provide same level of service as current prices”
While giving a breakdown of the increment in charges, Public Relations Officer of Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) at PTML Terminal, Comrade Ayokunle Sulaiman told DAILY TREND NEWS that terminal handling, delivery, documentation and demurrage charges were increased.
In all of these, he said there is no containerised cargoes involved, the increase is strictly on vehicles and plants.
“There has been a 50% in the charges including terminal documentation. For vehicles, terminal documentation was previously N10,000, it has now been increased to N15,000.
If you talk of Terminal Handling Charges and Terminal Delivery charges which is the core aspect of the job, all other ones like demurrage is avoidable”
“For jeeps (SUV) we were paying N21,000 as Terminal Handling Charges before, now it is increased to N33,000.
For the same SUV, we were paying N3,600 as Terminal Delivery Charges but it has been reviewed upwards to N7,500”
“This increment affects all kinds of vehicles, either buses, cars or jeeps, but we are yet to hear anything about the containerised”
Comrade Ayokunle however lamented that there was no consultation before the terminal operators came up with this hike in charges.
He said the terminal operators had muted the idea six months ago but freight forwarders kicked against it.
Speaking on whether the charges were justifiable, given the explanation of terminals, “They need to tell us before increasing charges, there must be a stakeholders meeting, we are not even talking of freight increment now, we are talking of things we see and handle everyday, if they were talking about increasing staff salary or employing more hands to enhance efficiency, we would be able to analyse it, we are humans. But you cannot just increase charges without giving us anything in form of efficiency”
“So for us, we cannot say it is justifiable because we were not consulted” he said
He told our correspondent that the freight forwarders would be having an emergency meeting on Monday before they could make an official statement.
Speaking at a recent press conference in Lagos, Executive Secretary of Nigerian Shippers Council, Barr Hassan Bello said that Terminal Operators have not increased their charges in a long time due to interventions by the council.
