OT Africa Line moves its terminal operations in Nigeria

OT Africa Line (OTAL) will be changing its port operations in Nigeria from Port Harcourt Old Port to Onne Port, 21 kms/2 hours sailing downstream of Port Harcourt. The first OTAL vessel to call at the West Africa Container Terminal, Onne Port, will be Romain Delmas (V796) ETA 14 April 2001.

Vessels operating on OTAL's ro-ro/container service will call at Onne Port every 11 days.

The move provides a number of key benefits to OTAL and its customers, including improvements in the line's cargo carrying flexibility and terminal efficiency.

OTAL's marketing manager, Paul Page, explains further:

"Whereas we served Port Harcourt Old Port with container ships only, we now serve Onne with multipurpose ro-ro vessels. This gives us greater flexibility to carry not only containerised cargo but also ro-ro, cars, heavylift, breakbulk and project cargo.


"With the many gas and oil facilities located around the Niger Delta, there is a great deal of project cargo that is not easily containerised and the ability to serve this region with ro-ro tonnage is a very positive development.

"OTAL's move to Onne will also avoid the traffic congestion that exists in and around Port Harcourt town and allow faster and more efficient access to the main Warri, Enugu, Aba and Onitsha roads. Using Port Harcourt required all of our vehicles to travel through the city and added hours to goods transiting to and from the main local trading markets.

"Another benefit of transferring to Onne is that cargo is released much more quickly; only one to two days after discharge compared to six to seven days at Port Harcourt."

OTAL will offer its usual range of services at the port including cargo preparation and consolidation, storage and warehousing, customs facilities and forwarding.

Onne Port is situated 21 kms downriver from Port Harcourt on the Niger Delta. The West Africa Container Terminal has a multi user jetty with a draft of 9.2 metres and a quay length of 200 metres. The port also has an extensive range of modern handling equipment and operates full security measures including 24-hour security patrols and secure fencing.