Engineer Greg Ogbeifun; Managing Director of Starz Maritime Investment; owners of Starz Marine Shipyard Limited, that was shut recently by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has admitted that his jetty was shut for non-compliance with the ISPS code.
Ogbeifun, who is also the President of Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN), however assured that the situation was under control and the facility may likely be reopened by next week.
According to him, billions of Naira would be needed to maintain the jetty to meet with the requirements of International Ships and Ports facility (ISPS) code, stressing that NIMASA officials stormed the facility and shut it down in line with its mandate as the DA.
He said the companies had begun negotiations with the Designated Authority (DA),which is NIMASA.
Shipping Position Daily recalls that three facilities namely: Heyden Petroleum Jetty Ijora Lagos; Waziri Jetty, Dockyard Road Apapa, Lagos and Starz Marine Shipyard Limited Onne in Rivers State were all affected by the NIMAS action.
While hinting that the exercise is a continuous one, NIMASA, in a statement maintained that the “shut facilities are to remain closed until the managers of such facilities correct the identified deficiencies in line with the dictates of the Code as the Agency aims to achieve 100% compliance with the cooperation of all stakeholders”.
“These facilities have persistently failed to comply with the ISPS code necessitating their closure in order to forestall a situation where security breaches in such facilities will negatively impact the compliant ones”, the statement had added.
“These closures are in exercise of the Agency’s powers in line with provisions of Part VIII of the ISPS Code Implementation Regulations 2014 under which the facilities were adjudged to be non-compliant despite repeated warnings to remedy the deficiencies”, NIMASA statement stressed.
Justifying its action, NIMASA said it had “consistently stated its commitment to the enforcement of full compliance with the ISPS Code especially in the face of growing terrorists’ activities globally”.
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