A cooperation between the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) has been established in order to implement a vessel tracking service (VTS).
This pledge was made yesterday during a partnership renewal visit by NLNG Managing Director Dr. Phillip Mshelbila to the NPA Headquarters in Lagos.
The VTS will improve the NPA’s domain knowledge and management capabilities. It will be deployed by NLNG Ship Management Limited (NSML), an NLNG subsidiary.
Speaking about the development, Mohammed Bello, managing director of the NPA, said, “We are greatly delighted by this development especially as it comes at a time when we are stepping up efforts under the technical direction of the IMO to deploy the Port Community System (PCS) since the successful deployment of PCS is actually supported by the effective safety communication with vessel-to-shore and vessel-to-vessel that a VTS enables.”
Vessel Traffic Service is a safety measure for vessels required by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Convention on the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which ensures the safety of the ship, crew, cargo, the environment, and the port’s host community.
The NPA’s role as a port regulator and trade facilitation platform, together with NLNG’s position as a significant player in the global liquefied natural gas market, point to many advantages for the Federal Government of Nigeria’s increased focus on exports, which would be led by the NPA.
