APM Terminals Apapa Acquires New Equipment to id Customs Inspection

APM Terminals Apapa, Nigeria’s leading container terminal operator, has acquired seven new forklifts to facilitate cargo examination by officers of the Nigeria Customs and to improve movement of heavy materials within its yard.

Steen Knudsen, chief operating officer of APM Terminals Apapa, said the new equipment, which include six 5tons and one 16 tons forklifts, will boost efficiency of both Customs examination and other agencies in order to avoid sharing forklifts.

Recall that APM Terminals Apapa last year announced a fresh investment of USD80million for the year 2020-2021, bringing its total investment since 2006 to US438 million (approximately N168 billion), the highest by any terminal operator in Nigeria.

Since then, the company has acquired cargo handling equipment including seven Reach Stackers, two Empty Handlers, two Mobile Harbour Cranes and four Rubber Tyred Gantry Cranes (RTGs).

With the new acquisitions, APM Terminals Apapa now has 27 RTGs, 13 Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHCs), several reach stackers, forklifts, empty handlers and specialised terminal trucks in operation, making it the best-equipped port terminal in Nigeria.

Knudsen said the terminal has also rolled out a talent development programme and functional training for all employees.

“Our engineering and maintenance team are undergoing industrial automation and control training for better optimisation of the latest RTG fleet and other equipment. The functional training is in phases and cuts across all departments.”

APM Terminals Apapa also recently embarked on massive digitisation of its operations and services through the deployment of 4G LTE wireless network and the construction of a new Operation Command Centre to enhance service delivery.

“We remain committed to deepening our investment in Apapa to enable us handle increasing volumes at the port. The additional investments will create capacity to handle growth in the economy in order to support the Federal Government’s efforts on trade growth and improve service delivery across the logistic chain,” Knudsen said.

April 07, 2021