BEVERLY HILLS, May 02, (THEWILL) – With about N25 billion spent annually on aircraft maintenance by local carriers, investigation has shown that all the Nigerian airlines put together may have spent a whopping sum of N150 billion in the last six years in that respect.
THEWILL gathered that this amount could have been saved if the Ministry of Aviation had, within the period, kept its pledge of establishing a Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility for the industry.
It is now six years after the ministry made the promise, yet nothing is on ground to show the implementation of such a plan is ongoing or about to commence.
Over the years, airline operators have been groaning due to the high cost of aircraft maintenance. For instance, to carry out comprehensive C-check on an aircraft involves a huge financial outlay that ranges between $1 million and $2 million (between N470m ad N940m), depending on the scope of work involved.
Further investigations revealed that, at least, 70 aircraft are flown by eight scheduled operators in the country at the moment, just as the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has imposed a calendar limit for a C- Check at every 18 months.
According to a report by Statista on the revenue of the global aircraft MRO market, it was estimated that the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) market generated some $80.38 billion in revenue worldwide in 2018. The global market is expected to generate over $119 billion by 2027.
Another report by Mordor Intelligence, titled, ‘Growth in Passenger Air Traffic in Africa,’ disclosed that in the past 10 years, the African aviation industry had experienced a healthy air traffic growth rate and ranked as the second fastest-growing region in the world.
It stated that African airlines witnessed an 11.2 percent rise in traffic in Q1 of 2016, compared to Q1 of 2015, registering a total of 15.2 million passengers for 2016.
On the other hand, the report claimed, Nigerian airports have an annual capacity of about 10 million passengers, while their nearest competitors have a maximum capacity of 2.5 million passengers per annum.
It further revealed that the growth in air passenger traffic across Africa is expected to drive the demand for new aircraft deliveries of over 1,100 aircraft (which is spread over 10 years of manufacturing).
It, therefore, opined that ageing African aircraft fleet is expected to see intensive usage, decreasing the time before the next MRO, thus improving the demand for aircraft MRO in Africa.
Given the anticipated increase in demand for aircraft MRO, according to the report, the setting up of an MRO facility in Nigeria is expected to be a profitable business over the forecast period. The qualified investment is expected to cut down on the availability of spare parts for carrying out the MRO activity, thereby, restricting the business ability of upcoming MRO facilities in Nigeria.
The report states, “Besides, West Africa lacks the availability of a full-fledged MRO facility. Thus, the opening of an MRO facility in Nigeria is expected to act as the needed opportunity for stakeholders and venture capitalists of different airlines and aircraft owners to invest in the MRO facility.
“A single, complete MRO facility in Nigeria is expected to lead to the repopulation of aircraft traffic in Nigeria, in addition to a drop in airfares, crude oil prices and lifting of the foreign exchange ban on the aviation industry. Africa is expected to have a delivery of 1,000 aircrafts, while its 650 commercial aircraft fleet is expected to make regular visits to the MRO facility.
“The MRO facility to be constructed in Nigeria is also expected to receive aircrafts from foreign airliners for MRO. Being the only complete MRO facility in the area, the opportunity for the new MRO facility to capitalise the market and build a vast customer base is expected to hardly be of any trouble during the forecast period, under the current market scenario.”
Commenting on the absence of the MRO facility in Nigeria, the Chairman, Ex-workers of Nigeria Airways, Engr. Lookman Animashaun, lamented that Nigeria lacked an MRO because the country had not shown seriousness about having it.
The aviation expert said, “Honestly, I must tell you that we are playing to the gallery. If truly we are serious as a nation, we should have got MRO now. We should have built on what we had in Nigeria Airways then, rather than liquidating it.
Animashaun warned that without a sustainable MRO in the country, the aviation industry would continue to experience capital flight.
He stated that in most cases when an aircraft is due for heavy maintenance, it would be taken out.
“The aircraft will remain there and the next thing we are going to hear about the aircraft is that it can’t be sent to Nigeria. That is one of the reasons we are having low capacity in the industry as at today,” he said.
On the way forward, Animashaun called on the Federal Government and individuals to build MRO facilities urgently.
“This is a country where the weather has been so nice to us, unlike in Europe without good weather. It is good for us to have an MRO now,” he said.
In his views, a former Commandant of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, Group Captain John Ojikutu, observed that building aircraft maintenance depots had been on the list of government programmes as far back as the 1980s.
Noting that public-private partnership had been trending for a while in the global commercial aviation sector, he said that government could not regulate and still be the sole operator of aircraft and maintenance at any level.
Explaining further, Ojikutu said the delay in building an MRO facility in the country might be due to the absence of a clear understanding among those responsible for policy administration in government.
He added that the government could not be thinking of concessioning a part of commercial aviation and still desire to keep another. “Government cannot be a regulator of the industry and still be the sole operator. It either excises itself from the ventures or it is a minority shareholder of not more than 20 percent. It could also consider involving foreign technical and financial investors 30 percent, credible Nigerian investors 30 percent and the balance of the 20 percent for the Nigerian public,” he said.
Ojikutu confirmed that the cost of aircraft offshore maintenance had always been exorbitant and it ranged from $500,000 to $2 million, depending on the required level of maintenance.
“If you imagine about 50 aircraft in a year for whatever level and at an average of $500,000 to $1m for an aircraft, you might be looking at a total average of $25 million to $50 million. The question to ask is: do these airlines and aircraft operators make such earnings annually in returns to the Central Bank of Nigeria or we still have to find money for them from the public reserve? That is the dilemma of our country in distress and now bleeding”, he said.
Meanwhile, efforts made to reach out to the Director of Press at the Ministry of Aviation, James Odaudu, proved abortive as requests made to him were not responded to as at the time of filing this report.
About the Author
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
