By Oluyinka Onigbinde
About one month after the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) announced plans to move its ill-fated floating dock away from the naval dockyard in Victoria Island to the Continental Ships yard in Apapa, findings by Shipping Position Daily have revealed the real truth about the current status of the owned N50 billion modular floating dock.
Findings have revealed that the much-expected commissioning of the craft may have again hit the rocks, even as allegations of underhand dealings have emerged.
In what eventually emerged as a pack of lies from NIMASA concerning the whereabouts of the floating dock, our correspondents unearthed a startling revelation that the dock is currently being hidden from public glare somewhere around Snake Island in Apapa.
Multiple sources confirmed that the floating dock was removed from the Naval Dockyard on Victoria Island after it was damaged by a storm which ravaged the area recently.
Recall that NIMASA in a press statement issued by the Assistant Director Public Relations of NIMASA; Mr Osagie Edwards last month had stated that Melsmore Marine Nigeria Limited is responsible for the relocation of the Modular Floating Dock, from the Naval Dockyard to the waterfront of the Dolphin Jetty at the Continental Shipyard belonging to the NPA.
This new twist comes about none months after the Federal Government approved the concessioning of the floating dock to a company known as J. Marine Logistics Limited.
Director General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Michael Ohiani, who disclosed this in Abuja in December 2022, said the floating dock concession contract was based on Operate, Maintain and Transfer (OMT) basis for an initial period of 15 years.
He said the concessioning of the floating dock is expected to generate $65.6 million (about N27.2 billion) into the coffers of NIMASA and create over 800 direct and indirect jobs.
Beyond revenue generation, he said the floating dock is also expected to develop capacity and provide maintenance facilities for ships and boats.
However, our investigation has actually revealed that the floating dock has been evacuated from the naval facilities, after the accident.
But, Melsmore Marine Nigeria Limited, which NIMASA claimed to have been contracted to move the modular floating dock from naval dockyard to Continental Shipyard, last week denied any contractual obligation with NIMASA regarding the relocation or management of the Modular Floating Dock, contradicting earlier claims by NIMASA that the company was responsible for relocating the floating dock.
Spilling the beans on the suspicious movement of the craft, the Managing Director of Melsmore Marine; Mr Danny Fuchs, in an exclusive interview with Shipping Position Daily, said his company never moved the floating dock as it turned down the offer and that there was never a contract to manage the floating dock or relocate it after then.
“There is no contract as such. The Melsmore marine, as you are claiming, got the management contract from FEC, but was approved by another company for 25 years. How can it be?” he questioned.
Fuchs further clarified, “NIMASA was only talking to me business-wise on relocation of the floating dock, move it from Navy dockyard to Continental shipyard and install it there, but we were not able to do it because the area where the floating dock is designated to go and be relocated was occupied by Sea Lion (a dredger belonging to the NPA)”
“So our job was to relocate this floating dock from the Navy dockyard to Continental Shipyard, we couldn’t do that, because the area where the floating dock was supposed to go was occupied. So our proposal to NIMASA was handed over to them in June 2022. What is the date now, you know, things have changed along the time.”
When asked about the current status of the business relationship with NIMASA, Mr Fuchs asserted that: “No, there is no contract. If they say there is any contract, let them show you. We only have a commercial relationship on this. We submitted the proposal in June 2022, and they approved it in March 2023. We couldn’t accept the award, because we couldn’t commence the job due to the presence of a dredger called Sea Lion owned by NPA.”
He said, however, that although a recent development prompted a re-evaluation of the situation following the relocation of Sea Lion from the designated area, leading to renewed discussions with NIMASA.
Fuchs added that he had contacted Damen Shipyard to reassess the project’s feasibility. He however informed that during an inspection, they discovered the shocking truth that the floating dock had sustained significant damage during a recent storm and had been tucked away in a remote area.
He also expressed doubts about certain employees within NIMASA, noting that, despite the good intentions of the Director-General, Dr. Bashir Jamoh, there appeared to be individuals within the agency working against the floating dock project. He highlighted the challenges of conducting business with NIMASA, even as he alleged staff’s preference for financial gains over achieving results and the bureaucratic hurdles faced in the process.
He poured out his mind about the relationship with NIMASA. He said: “Well, honestly speaking, if you see me and we talk, I think DG is a good man,” Fuchs said. “But you know, under him, people are trying to sabotage his job. You know, it looks to me that a lot of people are after him, after his position, after his job. But in this case, I think his intentions are very good. But the people under him, I don’t know, are trying to sabotage his job. You know, he’s a CEO, he cannot do everything. He cannot do other people’s jobs.”
“NIMASA is a very tough place to do business. This is why I don’t like to do business with them. If you consider NPA to NIMASA, NPA is one million times better than NIMASA. So, NIMASA needs to improve”.
Not done in his disdain for some NIMASA top staff, Mr Fuchs said: “They are not operational people; most of them are administrators. Even though they are specialists, they don’t know how to do it. But if you come to an operation, they don’t know anything. So, you cannot talk to these people because they always look at money, money, money. They don’t look at the achievement. They don’t look at the results. So, everything for them is like, it’s too tight. The bureaucracy is too much”.
