•Treasury CS Ukur Yatani says the government is considering offering at least 60 days of free storage for importers of cargo through the Lamu Port.
•Shippers say ready to use the port but the government has to meet the stakeholders halfway.
The Kenya Ports Authority and Kenya Revenue Authority have extended a number of incentives to attract potential users of the new Lamu Port.
They target a variety of sectors including tea, coffee and mining, with transhipment business also on the cards.
The government has removed transhipment fees of $10 (Sh1065.40 ) and waived the 30-day requirement for evacuation of transit cargo.
It has also removed the witnessing of stuffing of exports of tea, coffee, spices and herbs, among other export products for those using the country's second major seaport to be commissioned next month.
Treasury CS Ukur Yatani said the government is considering offering at least 60 days of free storage for importers of cargo through Lamu Port.
Currently, the government only allows 21 days of free storage.
KPA had earlier extended promotional tariffs to shippers and transporters which include a 30-day free storage period for transhipment and transit cargo, 14 days free storage period for domestic cargo and a 40 per cent discount for cargo-based charges as per the KPA tariff.
Coasters carrying transhipment cargo from Lamu to Mombasa shall be offered a 40 per cent discount on the cargo handling charges.
Port stakeholders, including the Kenya Ships Agents Association, have requested the government to consider allowing more storage days.
KSAA chair Sylvester Kututa said they are ready to use the new port but the government "has to meet the stakeholders halfway."
“An introductory tariff is also key,” said Kututa.
In a quick rejoinder,CS Yatani said the proposals by the shippers will be looked into by an inter-agency standing committee, that has been formed to try and come up with workable incentives.
“We might be allowing a 90-day storage period depending on how things may go,” said the CS.
In the long term, Yatani said proposals by the Kenya Transporters Association to reduce fuel charges, so as to cushion transporters from the long-distance to Lamu, might be considered.
“The fuel prices may be reduced soon,” said Yatani.
KRA chairman Francis Muthaura said already some of the incentives like the elimination of witnessing of stuffing of exports of tea, coffee, spices and herbs are already in place.
On the storage period, Muthaura said: “We may consider a period in tandem with the KPA promotional storage period to avoid the issue of customs warehousing accruing or any other period the commissioner may deem fit.”
For the transhipment fee waiver, Muthaura said the commissioner may extend a moratorium under certain exigencies that are deemed necessary.
“The paperless customs environment we offer means faster clearing of cargo which saves time and eradicates loopholes for possible dirty deals,” said Muthaura.
The elimination of long processes carried out by verification officers for direct tea exports has been done since March 25, Muthaura said.
KPA is keen to cement LamuPort as a regional transhipment hub, with the facility also expected to serve southern Ethiopia and South Sudan.
Transshipment is the shipment of goods or containers to an intermediate destination, then to another destination.
One possible reason for transshipment is to change the mode of transport during the journey, such as from ship transport to road transport, known as transloading.
The government has completed construction of the first three berths, of the planned 32-berth port, at a cost of about Sh40 billion.
Its operationalisation will present a strong case for private sector involvement in constructing the remaining 29 berths and other components of the Lamu Port South Sudan Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET)corridor, including the Special Economic Zone, which has been gazetted in a “Lamu Port City” initiative.
Lamu which will be the second major seaport, after the Port of Mombasa, is expected to connect Kenya and the region's hinterland to over 300 ports globally.