Estimation of cost of delays on vessel operations in container terminals of Nigerian seaports
Date
2024-06
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Federal University of Technology, Owerri
Abstract
The study evaluated the cost of delays on vessel operations in container terminals of Nigerian seaports. The objectives of the study are to estimate the average delay in vessel operations in Nigerian ports container terminal, to estimate the economic cost implications of delay in vessel operations in Nigeria container terminals, determine the average service rate of vessel at berth in Nigerian ports container terminal, derive the container terminal utilization coefficient of Nigeria ports, model the relationship between delay in vessels operations and trend of shipping operations in Nigeria container terminals, determine the effect of cost of delays on trend of shipping operations in Nigerian container terminals and to measure the extent of port users satisfaction with port operations relative to the extent of delay in vessel operations in container terminals in Nigeria. The study used a mixed design method consisting of the use of both secondary data and primary data obtained from survey. The major container terminals in Onne, Rivers, Tin Can Island and Apapa ports were used to carry out the study. Secondary data on ship turnaround time of vessels at the terminals, vessel traffic calls to the terminals, TEU throughput trade handled at the terminals, berth occupancy rates of the terminals Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT) of vessels worked at the terminals, and tariff and charges for vessels operations in each port terminal were obtained from the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) statistical reports. Each dataset covered a period of 16 years from 2007 to 2022, representing the port concession era in the Nigerian port sector. Primary data on the level of port users’ satisfaction with the services of the terminals relative to the extent of delay in ship operations in the port terminals was obtained by the use of questionnaires as survey instrument. The study used the queuing model, customer satisfaction and loyalty index, Log-linear multiple regression analysis and descriptive cum inferential statistics to analyze the data. The findings of the study reveal that the ship operators experienced annual average of between 2.8 days and 14 days delay in vessel operations in the Nigerian port sector between 2007 and 2022. The Nigerian economy lost an average of USD 26935.33 per annum between 2007 and 2022 in the port sector with standard deviation of 11468.24, as result of delay in vessel operations in the container terminals in Tin Can Island port, Apapa port, Rivers port and Onne port. The container terminal utilization coefficient of the Onne, Tin Can Island, Apapa and Rivers are 99%, 99%, 99.5% and 96% respectively. The findings of the study also indicate an average port user’s satisfaction score of 54.38% with standard deviation of 31.623 relative to the extents of delay in vessel operations in Nigerian port sector. There is significant effect of cost of delays in Vessels Operations on Trend of Container Shipping Operations in Nigerian Container Terminals. The study recommended that terminal operators and port management should comply with the 2days ship turnaround benchmarks operational in global ports in order to reduce the economic cost of delay imposed by vessel operations delay in the Nigerian port sector.
Description
This thesis is for the award of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Maritime Management Technology
Keywords
Seaports, container-terminals, vessel-operations, delay-cost, Department of Maritime Technology and Logistics
Citation
Nwoloziri, C. N. (2024). Estimation of cost of delays on vessel operations in container terminals of Nigerian seaports (Unpublished Master's Thesis). Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Nigeria