Dredging of Calabar Channel

The multi-billion Naira Federal Government’s Calabar Channel Management project, which is a joint venture between the Nigerian Ports Authority and Messrs Global Engineering and Technical Company Limited, is going on as scheduled, the management of Calabar Channel Management (CCM) has said.

Its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Bart VanAn Eenoo, made this revelation in a press statement to TheNews that the dredging of the Calabar port access channel was on course and there is no controversy on the extent of work done so far on the project. VanAn Eenoo, who was reacting to an ongoing speculation in the media on the project, debunked the rumour that about $35 million had been paid by the NPA to the company for the work done on the project so far.

According to him, since the federal government approved the dredging of the Calabar Channel and Calabar port access channel, all the parties involved in the project have been discharging their responsibilities in accordance with due process.

Bart VanAn Eenoo

He said his company was shocked to read in the media of such unscrupulous amount, thus setting the record straight that CCM only submitted invoices of $19, 947, 679, 34 covering bathymetry survey, maintenance dredging of channel, channel monitoring, operation support, mobilisation of two dredgers and administrative expenses pre-financed by the technical partners of CCM. Out of the amount, the managing director said they were only paid $7.5 million on 8th June, 2015, two years after the commencement of the contractual agreement.

The statement read in parts: “In the 4th Quarter of 2014, the CCM submitted invoices for payment covering dredging and administrative expenses after certification by the NPA Project resident Hydro graphic Surveyor and the Technical Auditor, CARES. The invoice is for the sum of $19, 947, 679, 34 submitted on February 9th, 2015. Out of this amount, management has only paid $7.5 million to the CCM on 8th June, 2015, two years after the commencement of the contractual agreement. Therefore, it is incorrect to say that the sum of $35 million was paid to the company by the NPA for the 4th quarter of 2014 as reported in the media. It should be pointed out here that the NPA Project Resident Hydro graphic Surveyor and technical auditors on the project; CARES Limited were actually on board the dredger during the campaign and payment was effected only after they verified that what was presented tallies with the work done and in accordance with the joint Venture (JV) agreement.”

The Calabar Port access channel has been designed as a project that will boost the nation’s economy and open Cross River State as a frontier to the world of investment. Under the agreement, the NPA and Niger Global Company resolved to establish a limited liability company known as Calabar Channel Management to perform the statutory duties of the Authority in the Capital and Maintenance dredging, quarterly bathymetry survey, buoy maintenance and surveillance, wreck removal, visual pollution monitoring and reporting, planning and management of the maintenance dredging operations in Calabar Channel, training of the Authority’s staff and any other activity which will enable the parties to achieve the objects or business of the company.