Hyacinth Chinweuba
The Director General of, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency NIMASA, Dakuku Peterside, has restated commitment of the agency to ensure that safety standards are not compromised in the operations of the nation’s maritime industry.
Peterside while speaking at the 10th Oil Trading and Logistics (OTL) Expo in Lagos, as one of the discussants on the topic “Competitiveness and Standards in Ship and Shore Logistics for Petroleum Products” noted that the logistics of ship and shore serve as the gateway for supply of petroleum products, which involves interconnection of different modes of transport.
Represented by the Agency’s Head of Shipping Development department, Mr. Akin Akinyosoye, the DG disclosed that the demand and supply equation are central to cost and price differentiation, thereby necessitating enhanced safety standards regulation.
The DG also called on shipowners to be mindful of safety and quality standards which tend to enhance competitiveness in the industry emphasising that safe and secure shipping is a critical pillar in the oil and gas logistics chain.
“Many national and international organisations including countries are revisiting and amending safety standards regulations to further strengthen the legal framework relating to ship and shore operations for the oil and gas sector. More importantly, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO’s) Marine Environment Protection Committee is reviewing measures to address issues not already covered by SOLAS, and to improve the supply chain on carriage of dangerous goods and hazardous substances”, the DG said.
He maintained that NIMASA will diligently enforce safety standards relating to logistics involved in the oil and gas sector noting that incidents involving the sector tend to have devastating effects on the marine environment and inhabitants of coastal communities.
The NIMASA, DG also reiterated the Agency’s zero tolerance for all forms of criminality on the nation’s waterways through its partnership with the Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Air Force, which he said has yielded so much result.