NPA launches 4 tugboats valued at $30m, boosts agency’s towing capacity

As part of efforts to boost operations, The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Ms Hadiza Bala Usman has officially launched the four new tugboats acquired by the agency while revealing that the tugboats cost the agency a whopping $30 million dollars.

Usman made the disclosure during the official ceremonial launching of the tugboats at the Continental Shipyard, Naval Dockyard, Apapa.

According to Usman, the four newly acquired Tug Boats; Daura, Ubima, Uromi and Majiya are the best you can find anywhere in the world.

“The purchase of the four tugboats cost us the sum of $30m, the cycle started in 2015, and it is an ongoing procurement process

“It will provide the authority an avenue where we can tug in very big vessels; a lot of our operators have been concerned about the towing service the NPA has been delivering, but with the entry and addition of these new tugboats to our fleets we will be more efficient in delivering the towing services in the pilotage district

“We now have nine tugboats, so we will be looking at the requirements across the respective zones and spread them accordingly. These tugboats are top of the range tugboats globally, they are the best available in the market and we have brought them to the Nigerian market so they can enhance our maritime operations.