Northern Islands Stevedoring Company Limited (NISCOL) is strengthening its cargo operations in the northern provinces with a new vessel designed to help the company fulfil its shipping responsibilities under an amended concession agreement with the Government.
The LCT NISCOL 001, which arrived in Luganville this week, can carry up to 354 tonnes of cargo and cost more than VT110 million.
NISCOL Chief Executive Officer Hollingsworth Ala says the vessel is not intended to compete with existing shipping operators, but to enable the company to provide services required under its concession.
“So the reason we invested in a vessel is not to compete with other existing shipping companies. We looked at what is required under the concession.”
Supporting cargo deliveries to northern islands
Ala says the vessel will mainly carry out services that NISCOL has previously been unable to provide when international ships deliver cargo directly to islands in the northern provinces.
Under the amended concession, NISCOL is required to handle international cargo arriving through the northern provinces, including cargo delivered to locations such as Litzlitz in Malekula.
He says the company has a responsibility to ensure cargo is transported to and from these locations, even when international vessels travel directly to an island.
Changes to NISCOL’s concession agreement
NISCOL underwent restructuring in 2016 and entered into a 50-year concession agreement with the Government.
Following what the company described as positive financial performance and the payment of dividends to its shareholders in 2020, its new board approached the Government to seek changes to the agreement to allow further investment.
Ala says discussions with successive governments took close to five years before the amended concession agreement was approved in July 2025.
“NISCOL continued discussions with successive governments. It took close to five years before the Government finally agreed that the concession agreement needed to be amended, and the changes were made in July 2025.”
The investment in LCT NISCOL 001 is expected to strengthen the company’s ability to handle cargo and improve shipping support for communities and businesses across the northern provinces.
