From April 1, 2017, importers are to pay the revised haulage rate approved yesterday by the Joint Council of Seaport Truck Operators (JCOST) for the Lagos seaports.
Depending on the destination, the new rates within Lagos State range from N80,000 to N150,000 for general cargo, N60,000 to N140,000 for 1x20, N100,000 to N170,000 for 2x20, and N80,000 to N140,000 for 1x40, while for upcountry, the rate varies according to distance.
More so, the general body adopted a 50 per cent demurrage of containers payable to the truck operators, who are also to earn “25 per cent of the initial payment for return of empty containers to stem assaults in the business,” while the trucker is free to refuse to return such empty container of the fee is not paid.
According to the body, compliance shall be enforced by a central taskforce at JCOST level and local taskforce at the unit level at the point of operation/loading, while truckers would have to present a certificate of compliance or be liable to a fine, which is still being fine-tuned.
Parties to the resolution include the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria/Truck Drivers Unit (MWUN/TDU), and Truck Terminal Users Association of Nigeria (TTUA) – all represented by their heads.
Justifying the rates review at the general session of the body in Lagos Thursday, JCOST Chairman, Mr. Kayode Odunowo, lamented the nation’s present economic realities and related cost of doing business in the industry. According to him, the council arrived at the new template after exhaustive investigations, research and deliberations.
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