From Uche Usim, Abuja
In an effort aimed at boosting safe water transportation, Caverton Offshore Support Group has launched a 40-seater boat (water bus) that can function efficiently in coastal areas across the country.
The company has also secured a major contract of repairing the presidential fleet of the President of Benin Republic.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Group, Mr Olabode Makanjuola, made the disclosure in Abuja on Tuesday at the exhibition stand of the company, at the ongoing Nigerian Oil and Gas Conference (NOG) conference in Abuja
He revealed that the company which started in 1999 by providing marine logistics services for the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) was expanding from aviation services towards marine transport.
Olabode said, “We are able to build our first prototype boat which is oil industry standard, meaning that it is very safe and we are very proud of it as it is our newest project. It can also be used as a crew boat for the IOCs. We are looking at all the riverine areas, we have got people interested in this in Akwa Ibom, Rivers, among others.”
On aviation services which Caverton started in 2004, the CEO said: “We also found that Nigeria lacks Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility and training, and so we built the first ever MRO centre in Lagos. We don’t have to fly any of our aircraft out of the country for major repairs.
“We can actually strip an aircraft down and put it all back together again. We now do third party as well. So, the Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Air Force, and even the Presidential fleet of Benin Republic actually use our services. The idea is to create a hub in Sub-Saharan Africa for this sort of operation”, he said.
Also on training, he said the firm bought the first Simulator facility for helicopter training. “An hour on this simulator is an hour flying and it is really for people who want to learn how to fly.”
He also said when the aviation section of the business began, all of the pilots were expatriates but with intense training, it had reached 75% local content.
Extolling the efforts of Caverton Group, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr Simbi Wabote said the water bus was a toast to local content and a testimonial that Nigerians can do a lot when given the opportunity and necessary incentives.