In a bid to deepen the channel leading to Warri port hitherto hindered by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC pipeline, the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA said discussion is at an advanced stage with the corporation for the relaying of its pipeline from the present 7.5 meters to about 14 meters.
Managing Director of NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko who disclosed this in Lagos, also said that before the relaying of the pipeline, the Authority has commenced remedial dredging of the channel to make it navigable for visiting ships.
Bello-Koko said that two consultants have been contracted to carry out the mapping and surveying of the channel for actual dredging to commence.
According to him, “It is when this mapping and surveying is completed because approaching ships don’t even know what is there. The issue here is the case of the chicken and the egg which comes first, is it the egg or the chicken?
“The channel has an NPPC pipeline buried about 7.5 metres, so you cannot go further than that but the discussion has started with NNPCN to see how that pipeline can be buried deeper which means we have to dredge deeper to get to ten or 14 metres depending on how far the pipelines are buried. Yes, we know that is one of the longest channels which makes it extremely expensive to dredge.
“For Sapele port, we’ve been having meetings with the Nigerian Navy; I said this earlier, what part of it can be operational and will not be a security threat to them because you cannot bring civilians into a military zone. That place has practically turned to a military zone.
“We know what happened in the past that we needed their presence but that discussion is taking place between the NPA and the Chief of Naval Staff. We are assessing the facilities in Koko and Burutu and we are going to rehabilitate them, especially Koko. The quays are collapsing and that is one of the things we are going to do in 2022.
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