The Nation Newspaper

Category: Maritime

  • NPA, Commerce Chamber collaborate

    NPA, Commerce Chamber collaborate

    The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) is partnering the Kano State Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture to boost trade.

    Its Managing Director, Mallam Habib Abdullahi also promised, during the visit of officials of the Chamber to his office, to post an officer to the chamber for effective regulation.

    He praised the strategic role being played by Kano indigenes in the port concession programme as represented by Alhaji Aliko Dangote, who is the Chairman, Greenview Development Nigerian Limited (GDNL) and Alhaji Samad Rabiu of BUA Industries Limited.

    He promised that the agency would continue to participate in the yearly Trade Fair in Kano.

    The Chamber’s President, Mallam Umar Farouk Rabiu, urged NPA to build a permanent pavilion at the Kano State Trade Fair ground, adding that as a mark of respect for NPA’s continuous presence at its past trade fairs, the Chamber has provided a permanent office for the organisation at its secretariat to promote ports business.

    Rabiu promised to continue to promote NPA and the industry.

     

  • Decentralise licence office, Customs chief urged

    Decentralise licence office, Customs chief urged

    Comptroller-General (CG) of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Col. Hameed Ali (retd) has been urged to decentralise the issuance and renewal of licence from the headquarters to operational zones across the country.

    The Zone ‘A’ Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs (ACG), Charles Edike, made the suggestion when he visited the National Secretariat of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) in Lagos.

    He praised ANLCA and its leadership for cooperating with officers and men of the service over the years, hoping that the focus on Customs by the Federal Government for more revenue would be met by all of them.

    The Customs chief advised the agents to speak out against injustice.

    ANLCA Zonal Coordinator Sir John Ofobike said there was an urgent need to decentralise so that Customs zonal offices would be effectively in control of all the commands under them.

    ALNCA kicked against the blockage of licences of their members without contacting the owners, the menace of camp boys/touts at the ports and alleged intimidation of their men, especially by Customs officers and other security agents.

    The group also wants Customs to address what it called double standard in the valuation of vehicles by its valuation units.

    The agents appealed to Edike to help them in stemming the ferrying of containers to Lilypond and KLT commands and to assist in protecting their members from fraudulent use of their licences.

     

  • Our expectations of Peterside, by stakeholders

    Our expectations of Peterside, by stakeholders

    The appointment of Dakuku Peterside as Director-General (DG) of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has sparked interest in the industry. Some stakeholders feel he has what it takes to do the job, others doubt his competence.

    Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) President Olayiwola Shittu and operators in the industry, who spoke with The Nation, said those against his appointment lacked the knowledge of his pedigree and qualifications.

    They urged the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, to prevail on Peterside to address some of the agency’s challenges.

    Some NIMASA workers, sources at the Federal Ministry of Transport said, have acquired reasonable maritime education to enable the agency discharge its core mandate of safety at sea.

    Peterside, a senior official who craved anonymity said, must ensure that the territorial waters cease to be the hiding place for unseaworthy vessels.

    Unsrcrupulous foreign vessel owners and operators, the official said, engage in illegal and unsafe activities on the waters and must be checked.

    “It is not just enough for the government to appoint the DG of NIMASA without telling him what  he needs to do to redeem the image of the organisation.

    “The new DG must be determined to work and we have no doubt about his ability to deliver on the core mandate of NIMASA,” the official said.

    Shittu told The Nation that Peterside needs to ensure “safe, secure and efficient shipping on clean oceans by making use of the available human capacity that will effectively regulate vessels on the waters for sustained economic growth’’.

    “The report from World Maritime University (IMO) shows that since the inception of the IMO, there had been 946 African graduates in various fields of maritime. Of this number, 172 are Nigerians, making up a good percentage of the total number.

    ‘’For the International Maritime Law Institute, 224 Africans have graduated from the institution; of this number, 74 are Nigerians. Therefore, one can confidently say that the start-of capacities are available in the country. What remains for the new DG is to harness them.

    “My advice to him as somebody who wants to succeed is to establish a data base of graduates from the two institutions as a resource base that could be pooled to perform major tasks for the agency and the sector if, when and where necessary,” Shittu said.

    Investigation by The Nation, however, revealed that some of the trained NIMASA staff have been deployed to areas and departments that have nothing to do with their training despite the huge tax-payers money spent on them.

    “Serious attention”, Shittu said, should be given to this serious lacuna in the system by the new DG.

    “Peterside as the flag bearer of APC in Rivers State must demonstrate enough determination by ensuring that NIMASA as a critical player in the economic well-being of Nigerians promotes indigenous shipping business.

    “It is sad that some of the past DGs of the agency are suffering from sea-blindness in the sense that they do not appreciate the wealth creation opportunities abundant in the maritime sector. They literally walk on wealth without harnessing the opportunity,” Shittu said.

    Last Friday, workers resumed as early as 8 am on learning that Peterside may assume work that day.

    The workers trooped in large number despite the heavy traffic on Apapa road.

    The car park was almost full by 8.30am, an unusual development at the agency.

    Workers, who spoke with the paper, said they resumed early because of the information they got that Peterside does not tolerate tardiness.

  • How single window platform can grow maritime trade, by experts

    How single window platform can grow maritime trade, by experts

    HOW can Nigeria’s maritime sector be strengthened? It is by the adoption of the Single Window (SW) platform to reduce cost and time in port operations, experts have said.

    SW is used by many countries to facilitate trade and generate revenue at their ports.

    The maritime experts, who gathered last weekend at a Media Trade Facilitation Workshop in Ghana, said the adoption of SW would make Nigeria’s ports competitive in the international trade network.

    The workshop’s was Achieving a National Single Window Vision. It was organised by Westblue Consulting in Akosombo, Ghana, for selected maritime reporters from Nigeria and Ghana.

    The experts urged President Muhammadu Buhari to direct Transport Minister Rotimi Amaechi to compel the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and Nigeria Shippers Council (NSC) to embrace SW to facilitate trade and generate more revenue.

    They also urged the National Assembly to back SW with a law.

    The Federal Government, The Nation learnt, will  generate additional $600 million yearly from the ports and borders, if all agencies keyed into SW.

    The huge amount that could be be generated from the platform, stakeholders said, necessitated the  introduction of the National Single Window (NSW) platform at the ports.

    Speakers at the workshop implored Buhari and Amaechi to ensure that government agencies embraced the platform for the seaports to work better.

    In last year’s World Bank’s trading across borders report, presented at the workshop by a speakers, Mr Somnuk Keretho, 189 countries’ economies were assessed and Nigeria was ranked 182. This is because the country was yet to adopt SW at the ports.

    In the report, countries, such asThailand, Morocco and Ghana, where most of their agencies have adopted SW, were ranked 56, 102 and 171.

    The report also showed that it was more difficult to do business at Nigerian ports and border stations because of low level of trade facilitation.

    The report specifically canvassed for reduction in cargo dwell time for imports and reduction in intrusive inspection by the Customs to boost trade.

    “Trade facilitation is about enhancing national trade competitiveness by improving import, export, transit procedures and document/information handling among government agencies, trades/business entities and logistic service providers for all major modes of transportation of the country-sea, air and land transport,” Keretho said.

    In her presentation, a trade facilitation expert, Valentina Mintah said collaboration between stakeholders and government agencies is key to the full implementation of the single window environment.

    The Single Window, she said, is a laudable initiative, which any country like Nigeria must embrace and take seriously.

    The single window, she said, will also enhance the national trade competitiveness through adequate improvement in import, export, transit procedures and information sharing system.

    The facility, she said, will ensure that there is a paperless customs declaration, compliance and online approval.

    Customs physical examination, according to her, would be reduced drastically and integrate the Customs with other government agencies, adding: “The single window facility needs to be supported by legislation.”

    Mintah, who is also the Programme Manager for the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) single window feasibility study, said the Federal Government needs to show the necessary political will in introducing a single window platform at the ports to reduce cost and increase the compliance level of importers and exporters.

    “Single window is a measure to reduce the time and cost of cross-border trade whilst introducing transparency and predictability into the international trade supply chain.

    “The benefits are immense, because on a micro level, it will boost the competitive advantage of Nigeria and its traders on the international markets while increasing government’s revenue, boost foreign direct investment, introduce  simpler, faster clearance, and release processes. It will also integrate risk management across stakeholders and promote entrepreneurship. This is because if you show that it is simple to participate in cross-border trade, then you will have new entrants into the market, who are going to seek opportunities in cross border trade.

    “t will also provide safe and affordable goods and services to the average man on the street. In summary, the effective implementation of the single window will be of significant benefit to the government, the private sector and Nigerians,” she said.

    Mintah also noted the huge impact the single window environment will have on the Nigerian economy and and said contingency plans must be put in place to ensure sustainability of the system if and when abused.

    In his recommendations, another key speaker, Mr. Tom Butterly, said there was the need for change in the Nigerian Ports operations system.

    “Majority of projects failed because the human and organisational changes necessary to support the introduction of the new technology have not been adequately addressed,” he said.

    The government, Butterly said, must ensure that heads of agencies and stakeholders “show strong willingness to engage in and support  the single window operation at ports and see the maintenance of such support as one of the key factors in the potential success of the project”.

    Government’s attention on the single window, he  said, should be focused on the following:

    • reducing time and cost of doing business at ports;
    • simplification and automation of ports operations;
    • reduction in the human inter face and increased transparency;
    • users friendly system must be adopted and Help desk created to assist importers and clearing agents;
    • the SW system must be secured and reliable and
    • the overall economic benefit must be to the government and Nigerians as a whole.

  • Use Maritime Academy to build capacity, Amaechi told

    The Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) has urged the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, to ensure that the Maritime Academy in Oron, Akwa Ibom State, promotes capacity building.

    It urged the government to train the academy’s students on protecting the country’s waterways from pollution, illegal fishing and dumping of hazardous waste, which it noted, were on the rise.

    The associations President, Prince Olayiwola Shittu, said maritime was a global and lucrative business, stressing that the Federal Government must empower youths and enrich the country through the academy.

    Shittu said it was not enough for the minister to focus on maritime agencies, but to ensure that the institute employs qualified workers and admits qualified students.

    The management of the academy, Shittu said, must ensure that it is alive to its statutory responsibilities, adding that the institution must provide the human capacity required for the sector in addition to serving as a research and knowledge centre for academics and the youths, who are interested in the acquisition of maritime training and knowledge.

    The establishment of the academy, he noted, was in furtherance of the the government’s passion for building local capacity in the sector and the export of such manpower.

    The dumping of toxic waste in the maritime domain and the increasing crimes on the coastline, he noted, require commitment on the side of the Federal Government and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA). This, he said, will enhance  cooperation with foreign partners to build maritime capability.

    The ANLCA chief said Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand had set the stage for cooperation between states, both in information exchange and mobilisation of resources.

    Since piracy is not the only threat to maritime security, another member, Shittu, advised the government to adopt best practices that can be implemented.

  • Customs seizes poultry products

    The Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone ‘C’ in Owerri, the Imo State capital, has impounded a 40-foot container laden with prohibited 2,000 cartons of imported frozen poultry products.

    The items, it was gathered, were concealed in 3,300 crates of Lacasera drinks worth N53.3 million. The arrest was made on Benin expressway, Edo State.

    The products, The Nation learnt, were preserved with substance used in preserving bodies.

    Its Area Controller, Haruna Mamudu said the command also seized 1,500 cartons of the same products last January.

    According to him, 27 seizures worth N219.2 million were made by the unit on February 12. An underpayment of N65.4 million was recovered during the month.

    Haruna bemoaned the importation and consumption of the dangerous products and advised Nigerians to desist.

    He warned smugglers to desist from the illicit trade or be prepared to face the law, adding that stiff penalties await anyone caught engaging in the prohibited trade.

  • Agents petition Amaechi over proposed sharing of ports’ charges

    Agents petition Amaechi over proposed sharing of ports’ charges

    • Why ANLCA is kicking, by council

    Should the Practitioners Operating Fees (POF) collected at the ports by the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) be shared among its five affiliated associations?

    The proposed sharing of the cash is said to have pitched the Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) against the other four groups.

    The others are National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Association of Registered Freight Forwarders Nigeria (AREFFN), National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA) and the National Association of Air Freight Forwarders and Consolidators (NAFFAC).

    CRFFN, it was gathered, may rake in over N2 billion yearly at the ports and land borders from  POF.

    The approved charges are, N1.50 per kilometre for air cargo, N1,000 per 20-foot container, N2,000 per 40-foot container, N500 per car/suv, N1,000 per truck or 20-foot equivalent, N2,000 per truck or 40-foot equivalent, N3.50 per tonnes for general cargo and N1.00 per tonnes for dry bulk cargo.

    To ANLCA President, Prince Olayiwola Shittu, the money should go to the Presidency instead of being shared by the ports associations.

    The money, he said, should be used by the government to develop port infrastructure and boost the economy.

    “ANLCA is the umbrella body of the Customs agents and we cannot pay money to the CRFFN that would be shared by the freight forwarders that contributed nothing to the purse.

    “Government should look for ways of collecting the money through the CRFFN without sharing with associations so that the money will go straight to the government and not to individuals and that is the position of ANLCA.

    “Some of the associations the CRFFN proposed to share the money with are going to contribute little or nothing to the fund because of their population,” he said.

    ANLCA, Shittu said, had written to Transport Minister Rotimi Amaechi on the need for talks over the matter.

    But a senior official of CRFFN, who pleaded not to be named said that the council is empowered to collect POF nationwide and to take 60 per cent of the collection.

    “The problem over the collection started when ANLCA National President Prince Olayiwola Shittu resigned from the council, following the approval granted CRFFN by the Federal Government to collect transaction fees at seaports, airports, and land borders.

    “The crisis generated by the approval forced the former Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar, to rescind his decision and directed the council to stop the collection of the fees from port operators.

    “But our position is that after collecting the 60 per cent, the council is to give 35 per cent of the amount collected to ANLCA, NAGAFF, NCMDLCA, AREFF and NAFFAC. The remaining five per cent would be shared among registered freight forwarders.

    “The reason ANLCA is kicking is because they don’t want the money to be shared equally. In the Animal Farm, ANLCA claimed, some are more equal than the other.

    “They want the money to be shared based on the contribution of each association to the fund. If association A contributed 20 per cent to the fund and association B contributed five per cent, let A take 20 per cent in the sharing formula and association B take five per cent. To them, you cannot reap where you don’t sow and that is the position the group wants the CRFFN to follow,” the official said.

    Also, a senior Customs officer who does not want his name in print kicked against the collection of the fees.

    “The service is of the opinion that the charges will no doubt cause delays in the clearance of goods at the port, thereby, leading to port congestion. Its implementation will also increase the cost of doing business with its attendant implication on the cost of goods and services,” he said.

  • Link ports with rail, govt told

    • Institute partners LASTMA on traffic control

    The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Nigeria has urged the Federal Government to link the ports with rail to boost quick cargo clearance.

    Its Executive Director, Mr. Francis Ehiguese, also urged the National Assembly to pass the Railway Bill. He said the bill’s passage would facilitate quick transformation of the maritime sector and help evolve a functional rail system that would answer the yearning of importers and Nigerians.

    Ehiguese spoke with The Nation during the official visit of over 40 students of the institute to the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).

    The event was organised in Lagos by the Centre for Logistics and Transport (CELOTE), last week.

    “The rail system is still epileptic because the National Assembly is yet to pass the Railway Bill into law, which could have wooed lots of investors into it. The passage is going to mark the beginning of making rail respond to the needs of the society and Nigerians,” he said.

    He said the Federal Government has done the right thing by concessioning the ports, which, according to him, has increased cargo and vessel throughput; improved their efficiency and created jobs for Nigerians.

    He also said the existence of the ports regulatory policy had made a huge difference in port operations, urging the lawmakers to facilitate the passage of the Railway Bill to reposition the port sector.

    “We are partnering LASTMA because we recognise the critical role of the agency in the control and management of unrelenting traffic challenges on Lagos major roads particularly in Apapa where the ports are located and during peak hours. Combating the stiff problem can be sometimes horrendous.

    “The situation is understandable if empirically analysed. For instance, information made available in 2013 by the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget shows that Lagos has 9,300km of roads network with over 1 million people travel to work via public transportation while a huge number use private vehicles If road user in Apapa  and in other part of the state keep to road rules and maintain safe-driving habits, traffic chaos would be avoided but the situation is contrary to what we expect,” he said.

    The students, Ehiguese said, visited the LASTMA facility at Oshodi to observe and “if possible participate in road traffic control across the state under the supervision of LASTMA officials.”

  • Apapa Customs rakes in N24b

    The Apapa Customs Command realised N24 billion in January, its Area Controller (CAC), Comptroller Willy Egbudin, has said.

    Egbudin said the command generated the revenue despite the dwindling naira and low level of importation.

    He said there would be no hiding place for importers and exporters who refused to follow the Federal Government’s rules.

    The low level of compliance by some importers and their clearing agents, he said, was responsible for the delay in cargo clearance.

    Egbudin said he would harness human and material resources to achieve zero-tolerance for under declaration and other corrupt practices.

    “We still have discrepancies in declaration. Most agents are still not transparent in their declarations. If they make honest declaration, it will make clearance of their cargo fast, save them from incurring demurrage and help Customs to facilitate 48-hour cargo clearance,” Egbudin said.

    He said importers’ dishonesty was the bane of achieving 48 hours cargo clearance, assuring the port community of the Customs commitment towards achieving 48 hours cargo clearance if honest declaration is made.

    “We will achieve 48 hours if honest declaration is done by the trade community,” the controller said.

    “We are not doing badly in revenue generation although there is low volume of import,” he said.

    Egbudin said more revenue would be generated by the command as import trade in the country improves, charging importers to desist from importing prohibited items.

    He said the problem associated with the Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) was caused by some importers as the information they provide contradicts the final documents submitted to Customs.

    PAAR, he said, was designed by the Service to help trade facilitation, calling on the media to educate the trade community to adhere to import guidelines.

    The CAC advised intending vehicle importers to visit the valuation unit for the correct duty before embarking on importation to avoid extortion.

  • Ex-minister to build refinery in Lagos

    Ex-minister to build refinery in Lagos

    A former Interior Minister and Executive Chairman, Genesis Shipping Worldwide, Capt Emmanuel Iheanacho, is to float a refinery in Lagos to boost local participation in crude oil lifting, it has been learnt.

    The parcel of land for the facility, it was gathered, was bought from the Onisiwo Family of Irede, a coastal town at the back of Apapa Port, Amuwo-Odofin Local Government in Lagos.

    When The Nation visited the site at the weekend, some leaders of the area said they were in support of the project and urged the government to support it.

    A senior official of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), who craved anonymity, said Iheanacho, who is also the Executive Chairman of Integrated Oil and Gas, had been given permission to build the refinery.

    When the refinery begins operations, the official said, indigenous shipowners would be able to participate in the lifting of crude oil from it. “Foreign vessels involved in offshore operations, collect a minimum of $5,000 daily. This is the least amount collected by foreign vessels on the nation’s waters and that is why the indigenous ship owners must be empowered to participate,” he added.

    The country, he said, is losing N1.8 trillion yearly to foreign ship owners and their choice of insurers over the indigenous companies in the lifting and importation of fuel.

    The project, the DPR official said, would end foreign domination in the capital intensive crude oil lifting business and allow indigenous ship owners to participate in the highly lucrative enterprise.

    The Part II of Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act of 2003, stipulates that “a vessel other than a vessel wholly owned and manned by a Nigerian, built and registered in Nigeria shall not engage in the domestic coastal carriage of cargo and passengers within the coastal territorial inland waters, of any point within the waters of the exclusive economic zone of Nigeria.”

    The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) is responsible for the enforcement of the Act.

    “Despite the Cabotage Law, Nigeria is losing N1.8 trillion yearly to foreign ship owners in cargo haulage. Under the law, coastal trade is reserved for indigenous ship owners; their foreign counterparts are allowed to participate in the business subject to a waiver by the Federal Government,” he said.

    He continued: “The law is not serving its purpose because the indigenous ship owners are not allowed to handle cargoes that pass through the nation’s waterways.

    “When the Cabotage regime came on stream, the intention was mainly to stimulate the development of indigenous capacity in the Nigerian maritime industry, if many years after, the situation remains the same despite the despite the efforts by NIMASA.

    “In the oil and gas industry, Nigeria has close to 500 oil wells. For each well, there is a  rig, which is supported by a minimum of five ships, and they are called oil support vessels. Each of the foreign ships earn $5,000, while others earn $150,000 per day.”

    He said:“The Cabotage Act seeks to reserve domestic coastal trade or Cabotage trade within Nigerian coastal and inland waters to vessels built and registered in the country, wholly owned and manned by Nigerian citizens. Foreign-owned vessels and companies are, however, allowed to participate in Cabotage trade within Nigerian waters, subject to obtaining a waiver and or license from the Federal Ministry of Transport.

    “More than 10 years after, not much has changed, as the indigenous vessel owners, who the law was designed to protect remained sidelined and impoverished while foreign shipping companies dominate the trade, while many Nigerians are jobless.’’

    He added:“I can say conveniently that even in the crude oil carriage that they do today, if indigenous ship owners are allowed to do 60 per cent of their own allocation, they will be putting back more than about N1.5 trillion or N1.8 trillion into the economy and that is huge contribution to the budget.”

    The ex-Minister also told The Nation at the week-end that the indigenous ship owners are yet to benefit from the Cabotage shipping regime.

    He said the Act has failed to give the envisaged financial impetus and active participation in the nation’s maritime trade to indigenous ship owners.

    Apart from identifying the inclusion of waivers clause as one of the factors militating against the Cabotage Act,  he said the low investment in the local refinery has made indigenous ship owners vulnerable in competing with the International Oil Companies (IOC).

    Although, he said, he was not against foreign companies in the country, the Master mariner said most of the foreign ship owners are hiding under the provision of waiver in the Cabotage law to enjoy the lifting of the crude and use foreign crew instead of employing Nigerians to man their vessels.

    By the time the refinery comes on stream, many indigenous shipping companies would be involved in the coastal trade and not less than 5,000 direct and indirect jobs would be created through the venture.

    Ihenacho said he has since received a licence to establish the refinery, adding that construction work would commence once he gets the government nod to do so.

    He said he was not happy that “Nigeria, as the giant of Africa, still exports crude overseas for refining and re-import same.”

    The former Minister said the planned refinery would be built in accordance with the dictates of the Department of Petroleum Resources and the Ministry of Environment.

    Officers of the Ministry of Environment, he said, had visited the site of the project for them to receive Environmental Impact Assessment Certificate.

    “We have said it for so many years those indigenous ship owners should be involved in crude oil lifting, but nobody seems to be listening because of involvement of the IOC. Now, we have resolved to build a modular refinery in Lagos so that we can add value and create jobs. This is what we have embarked upon. I have a licence to establish a refinery. By the time we commence operation, the ships we bought with several millions of naira can now be put to use effectively.

    “Before granting licence to establish a refinery, DPR must inspect the proposed site. This they have done. There is a licence for every stage; to establish, to construct and operate a refinery, all dependent on your ability to fulfill stipulated requirements.

    “Our focus now is to address the issue of Environmental Impact Assessment, feasibility study and all. We have been carrying the host community along and they are pleased to be a part of this project. The project will be financed by Nigerian and international financial institutions,” Iheanacho added.

    He said the country had for years, diverted its funds by allowing crude to be shipped by foreign vessels on a Free on Board Basis.  He added that the value on the crude oil in terms of the refining process by way of jobs creation had also been lost to other countries.

    “The profit from all these ventures is left in foreign lands. It is time we invest in our country and develop it. If we are successful at this venture, refined petroleum will be much cheaper than what we are paying for currently,” he said.