Hector Igbikiowubo
25 July 2008
Lagos — FEDERAL Government and the Lagos State government yesterday maintained sealed lips over the sixteen petroleum tank farms in the state barred from use of the bays to take delivery of imported petroleum products owing to the traffic jam caused by articulated tankers which load from their depots.
However, while speaking exclusively with Vanguard, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, the Minister of Transport disclosed that she had concluded plans to meet with all depot operators in Lagos next Tuesday.
She declined to have operators affected by the decision noting that she deliberately left out their identities during her media briefing to curb speculation or sensationalism. When contacted, officials of the Lagoas State government also did not divulge the list of affected depot operators, noting that it was a matter which falls directly within the purview of the Federal authorities.
One of Governor Babatunde Fashola's aides actually said the governor specifically cautioned them against divulging the list of affected depots to avoid udnue panic.
However, there was increased activities at the fuel pumps throughout the state for fear of the immediate and remote implications of the impending closure of the 16 depots. It would be recalled that Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, the Minister of Transportation made the disclosure about barring the tank farm operators while addressing the press in company of Babatunde Fashola, the Lagos State governor who also attended the Federal Executive Council meeting on Wednesday.
She said the measures were part of the recommendation of the committee set up to look into ways of decongesting federal access roads to the ports. While the suspended tank farms failed to meet the minimum conditions and requirements for provision of holding bay and associated facilities, 22 tank farms that meet the operational guidelines and provisions of requisite Holding Bays are to be allowed to continue to operate, sources say.
Although the tank farms affected by the decision where not mentioned, tank farms in the Apapa area worst hit by the traffic jam includes those operated by Obat, MRS, Ascon, Everest, Sahara, Folawiyo, Total, Capital, Integrated, Ibeto, Ibafon, Zenon, Wabeco, Sigmund, Eurafric, Techno Oil, Aquitaine, Honeywell among others.
It was gathered that the companies operating in the area have a combined installed capacity in excess of 600,000 metric. The committee recommended a three phase approach to the decongestion of the Federal Access roads.
Under the first phase which is for immediate implementation, the committee recommended that the government should clear, secure and re-acquire the Federal Government Right of Way (ROW) on major roads leading to the ports; coordinated and stricter use of Authority to Load (ATL) issued by the Terminal Operators and introduction of some basic traffic management measures.
The physical demarcation of secured ROW, redressing and re-development of some of the access and approach roads to Apapa and Tin-Can Island ports, the commencement of the port Novo Trailer park near Tin-Can island as well as monitoring and enforcing government policy guidelines on provision of service bays by the tank farm owners on major highways en-route Apapa and Tin-Can island ports is the crux of the recommendation for the second phase which is also hailed as short term solution.
The third phase which is a long term approach recommended the creation and use of alternative modes of transportation, in particular the use of the rail network by tank farms along Dockyard Road , Apapa; construction of additional Trailer parks on Public Private Partnership (PPP) basis and institutionalization of traffic control to the ports.
Diezani also disclosed that the construction of new tank farms in the vicinity of the Lagos ports have been banned until further notice, adding that drivers of articulated tankers who go in to load petroleum products constitute a nuisance by congesting access roads to the ports.
She said the suspension would be in effect until the operators of such tank farms build their independent holding bays to accommodate vehicles meant to take products from them.
Also speaking, Governor Babatunde Fashola said other measure that were put in place before now had been defied by drivers of the articulated vehicles.
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