A vessel management agreement has been signed between NLNG Shipping and Marine Services Limited (NSML) and Temile Development Company Limited, a Nigerian company, for the management of the shipping vessel LPG Alfred Temile 10.

The deal indicates a significant step forward for transporting liquefied petroleum gas in Nigeria and the West African sub-region.

Temile Development Company Limited owns the 23,000 cubic meter LPG Alfred Temile 10, and NSML is the official technical vessel manager.

Cooking gas supply to increase

The managing director of NSML, Abdulkadir Ahmed, spoke at an event in Abuja to finalise the deal.

He called it a significant milestone and stated that it would increase the supply of LPG or cooking gas throughout the sub-region.

According to Ahmed, the two companies' collaboration started with the building and delivery of the Alfred Temile, the first LPG vessel to NLNG, in 2020, and it has since expanded to include the delivery of a second vessel.

With its state-of-the-art design and technology, he added that the vessel would set a new standard in LPG transportation.

He also said the deal demonstrated the companies' commitment to operating a modern, efficient, and environmentally conscious fleet.

On their part, Douglas Berkheiser, Temile Development Company's general manager of operations, and Alfred Temile, the chairman/CEO, stated that the company plans to deliver another vessel before the end of the year.

The company claimed in a Vanguard report that it was extremely difficult to deliver the first vessel in 2020 since at that time, no Nigerian company was involved in the marine transportation of LPG.

“At that time, it was not a commercial decision, but a decision of we can do it and now we have done it,” he added

The chairman of the NSML board and executive vice president of Gas, Power, and New Energy at NNPC Limited, Olalekan Ogunleye, assured Afred Temile that NSML was extremely capable and would receive all the assistance needed to manage any number of vessels the firm would provide.