By Sulaimon Salau
The excessive charges by the shipping firms have continued to overburden Nigerians shippers who engage in groupage containerizing model.
The importers are currently groaning under excessive charges, which SlyeNews learnt always come in foreign currencies, making the cost of shipping higher than the cost of the goods.
Groupage containerizing model involves two or more consignees forging alliance to ship their cargoes together in a single container (1×20′ or 1×40′).
The process is expected to make shipping cheaper for the small-scale importers, but the story has turned otherwise, asl agents of the foreign shipping firms turn such containers to cash cow.
Chairman, Shippers Association of Lagos State, Jonathan Nichol told SlyeNews that the arbitrary charges has put Nigerian importers as disadvantage, as it astronomically shot up the cost of goods, mailing it unaffordable in the market.
Nichol said: “It is confirmed that one aspect of ripping off Shippers and Importers in Nigeria is through groupage shipments. The shipping lines agents in Nigeria are fraudulent in handling of groupage containers”.
He explained: “Freight charges are paid fully from Port of Loading to Port of Destination in foreign currency. No hidden charges are transferred to the Consignee whether or not there is trans-shipment from another port during transit.
“On arrival, the Shipping Lines Agents notifies the consignees who has the Original House Bill Ladings indicating their own cargo to come and pick up their cargo after unstuffing. In some cases, the local receiving agency delays in receiving the containers for up to one or two months.
“After receiving the containers and unstuffing at their warehouse, the consignees are informed to come and pick their cargo. Within this period, the local agent puts in a lot of charges against the consignees far and above the cost of the cargo.
“It is even cheaper to clear the container direct if all the consignees agree. The Master Bill Lading is normally consigned to the ship’s local agent while the House Bill Ladings shows owners of each cargo in the container. We have more groupage issues mainly from the Chinese shipping agencies handling groupage containers in Nigeria
“No wonder the Nigerian Shippers’ Council recently waded into the Shippers complaints after one and half years of economic torture from the same company,” he stated.
Nichol called for pegging of charges on groupage containers in Nigeria.
He said: “Most successful big Importers today started with groupage shipments. Then, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) had warehouses inside the ports and containers are moved direct from ships or stacking areas to the warehouses for unstuffing.
” We really do not understand why it takes three months to move groupage containers from the ports for unstuffing and nobody pays the importers for delays.
“There is no aspect of clearance of groupage containers to attract additional cost to be paid in foreign currency. It should stop. On storage charges, the bills must be commensurate with the number of days the cargo was stuffed in the warehouse and not the arrival date of the vessel.
“The consignee should not be subjected to excessive transfer charges from the designated port to the receiving warehouses,”he said.
Nichol said in considering the difficulties in Nigeria clearing systems, simplified methods must be put in place to curtail excessive charges on shippers.
He noted that additional costs paid in foreign currency in Nigeria is capital flight.
“Freight collect cargoes are normally paid in Nigerian currencies at the official bank rate if evidence is produced. Such cargo will not be released to the owner until the freight has been paid. Outside of that, it is a sin to rip off the shippers,” he said.
He canvassed that the issue must be dealt with in a forum for discussion with some of the groupage operators in Nigeria, the Nigerian Shippers Council, the shippers and importers.
Alternatively, he said importers should be paying freight charges in Nigeria Currency to ship owners, saying we have the right to protect our sovereignty.
