Frontline player in the Nigerian maritime sector, Sifax Group has extended its tentacles to the aviation sector following last week’s payment of 30 per cent of its bid price for Skypower Aviation Handling Company Limited (SAHCOL).
Sifax, through its subsidiary company, Skyway Aviation Handling Company Limited paid the statutory N1, 656,630,000 to the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) at about 6.40pm last Wednesday, September 30, 2009. The total bid price is N5, 552,100,000.00.
The BPE had reportedly directed that Sifax should pay the 30 per cent of the bid price within 15 days of the bid’s acceptance. By fulfilling that obligation, Sifax Group last week beat other companies that were equally interested in buying the strategic government – owned ground handling company, SAHCOL.
The BPE had about 24 hours before Sifax Group paid announced that the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) had approved that SAHCOL could be offered to four remaining bidders on the basis of ‘willing-buyer, willing-seller,’ following the failure of both the preferred bidder, Eraskorp Consortium and the reserve bidder, Pan Express Services, to make payment at the deadline as stipulated in the terms of sale made to them.
Shipping Position Weekly recalls that the four remaining bidders were: Skyway Aviation Handling Company, TAK Continental Limited, Moore Associates Limited and Aviation Handling Partners Limited.
They were all invited by the BPE to re-validate their earlier bids or make a fresh bid based on the new reserve price of N5. 522Billion.
An obviously elated head of corporate affairs and marketing for Sifax group, Mr Oliver Omajuwa confirmed the development to pour correspondent. According to him, Sifax is poised to make a definite statement with the acquisition of SAHCOL, saying that “having succeeded as an indigenous terminal operator in the maritime sector, nothing short of excellence is expected from us; I assure you that we will succeed”.
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