January 29, (THEWILL) – The Lekki Deep Seaport, Lagos, on Monday, received the first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) vessel, operated by French shipping giant CMA/CGM.
Named MV SCANDOLA, the Vessel was received by Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu. It berthed at the $1.5 billion first deep seaport in Nigeria at 1600 hrs on Monday.
Other dignitaries who received the vessel include the Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mohammed Bello-Koko; the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), Ukeyima Akutah, represented by the Director of Monitoring and Compliance, Cajetan Agu; the President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, represented by Dr. Adenike Fajemirokun; the Chairperson of Seaports Terminal Association of Nigeria (STOAN), Princess Vicky Haastrup; and the President General of Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), Adewale Adeyanju, among others.
Speaking at the event, Sanwo-Olu said the accomplishment of Lekki Port in welcoming the largest LNG-powered container vessel, CMA CGM SCANDOLA, within just one year of its operation, has enshrined Nigeria as a significant player in global port transactions.
“I think it’s a big feat. It’s something that we really need to roll out the drums for and be proud of because what this is about is, indeed, putting Lekki Freeport, Lagos, Nigeria into the world’s global logistics marine business.
“This is a business that has been a privilege of a few developed countries in America, Europe, the Far East, and some parts of Africa as well. But now, given the size of the business, they can come to our community. The Lekki Freeport and the Lekki Port itself have put and enshrined our name as one of the big movers of port transactions in the world,” he stated.
Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, commended Lekki Deep Seaport’s eco-friendly measures.
Oyetola, represented by the NPA MD, further commended Lekki Deep Seaport for not only being Nigeria’s first deep seaport but also the first fully automated port, aligning with international standards.
“The Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy is convinced that shipping has a pivotal role to play in global decarbonization efforts. This is why I would like to seize this moment to commend the Management of the Nigerian Ports Authority for complying with the Ministerial directive to take cognizance of the global energy transition in its port modernization project by deliberately factoring in measures that promote energy efficiency.
“Apart from its distinctive feature of eco-friendliness, ‘SCANDOLA’ ranks amongst the largest container ships to be called in West Africa with 15,000 TEUs. Lekki Deep Seaport’s natural depth of 16 metres, added to its multifaceted efficiencies, state-of-the-art equipment, and robust infrastructure, offers a capacity of up to 1.2 million TEUs in this phase 1, positioning the Port to serve as a mega transhipment hub to Nigeria’s neighbouring countries in the Gulf of Guinea and beyond.
“With shipping volumes promising to get higher, forward-looking investments such as the one we are gathered here to celebrate will certainly have a big impact in the long run. The imperative of making our Ports eco-friendly is no fluke. We will continue to support the NPA in its efforts at ensuring stakeholders’ compliance with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Sulphur Regulation on Nigerian Waterways,” he said.
Also, the Managing Director of Lekki Deep Seaport, Du Rougang, said the berthing of the vessel is creating a new plan for Nigeria’s ports.
