Firm Raises the Alarm over NPA’s Directive to Relocate Facilities

John Iwori An offshore oil and gas logistics services indigenous company, Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL), has raised the alarm over a directive that it should relocate its facilities to Bayelsa State.

It also raised the alarm over another directive that it should use the facilities of one of its competitors in Onne, Rivers State, Integrated Logistics Services Nigeria Limited (INTELS).

It said the two directives were contained in two different letters from the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

This is coming on the heels of last Wednesday’s resumption of office by the new Managing Director of the authority, Alhaji Sanusi Lamido Ado Bayero.

Managing Director of LADOL, Dr. Amy Jadesimi, who said the letter was received with shock, described the directive to move the company’s current project to Bayelsa as practicably impossible.

Describing the directives as “shocking,” she disclosed that the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua had kicked against such order from the NPA and it was rested.

Jadesimi expressed surprise that such directives could come up again even with company’s current level of development in the industry and with the full knowledge that her company was a competitor with INTELS.

According to her, the two letters from the NPA appeared to have confirmed the fear of conflict of interest that will come to play with the appointment of Bayero whose family is alleged to have substantial interest in INTELS.

Describing the NPA as a partner in progress in the current project, which it has with Samsung Heavy Industry (SHI) under the SHI-MCI Free Zone Enterprise, Jadesimi said the company will lead a delegation to the NPA for more clarifications on the two letters sent to the company.

According to Jadesimi, the directive did not take into account what was involved and of course all the laws empowering LADOL on its current base and the billions dollars fabrication facility project it is handling with SAMSUNG. The current place the company is located is a Free Trade Zone approved by the federal government.

The LADOL managing director said what the letter meant was that even if the company had a facility in Rivers State, it must still go to INTELS, a development she described as an attempt to encourage monopoly.

She stated that the federal government had not requested for 10 per cent equity in the company as it was the case with INTELS.