Can a foreign company appoint Vandyvah without a Nigerian entity?

Yes. Vandyvah can act as the Nigerian operational coordination point for overseas principals. A foreign company does not need a Nigerian subsidiary to appoint a Nigerian agent, though the consignee and commercial arrangements for a specific cargo still have to be correct in their own right.

How does reporting work across time zones?

Reporting is written, milestone-based and issued as events occur rather than only on request. A principal several time zones away opens the day with the current position rather than having to ask for it and wait a cycle for the answer.

Can Vandyvah be appointed protectively rather than as port agent?

Yes. Where the port agent is nominated by the counterparty, Vandyvah can be appointed separately to observe and report on the port call in the appointing party's interest.

Does Vandyvah maintain offices outside Nigeria?

Vandyvah is a Nigerian operating company, and that is the point: an overseas principal gets Nigeria-side execution and a single accountable Nigerian contact rather than a hand-off through a foreign branch.

What does Vandyvah need from an overseas principal to start?

What is moving and in which direction, the Nigerian port or location involved, the timing, the commercial terms determining who bears which cost, and one named person on the principal's side with authority to decide.

Aerial view of a container terminal with vessels alongside and stacked containers.

For International Shipowners & Principals

You May Be Thousands of Kilometres Away. Your Operational Risk Is Still in Nigeria.

A foreign principal should not need to understand every local port relationship before operating successfully in Nigeria. That is what the local operating partner is for.

Vandyvah acts as your Nigerian point of coordination between your organization and the local stakeholders required to move the operation forward. Our retired NPA experience adds an important layer of practical port knowledge to that relationship.

Global Communication. Nigerian Port Experience. Local Execution.

Establish Your Nigerian Operations Contact International trade hub

What does Vandyvah do for an international principal?

For international principals, Vandyvah acts as a Nigerian point of operational coordination between the client and the local port, terminal, service-provider and marine stakeholders required for the assignment.

What you receive

The operating relationship, itemised

This is what a Vandyvah appointment actually delivers to a principal outside Nigeria — not a promise, a deliverable list.

one defined Nigerian operations contact
pre-arrival planning
documentation coordination
local stakeholder coordination
operational status updates
exception escalation
delay-risk visibility
cost-awareness reporting
supporting records
completion reporting

The problem this solves

The hardest part of managing a Nigerian operation remotely is not the distance. It is not knowing what should happen next, who owns it, and whether it is actually being done.

You should not have to chase five different parties to understand one operation.

By region

Where our international principals trade from

Each regional hub explains the Nigeria-side requirement for that trade pattern and links to the relevant country pages.

International principals — questions we are asked

Can a foreign company appoint Vandyvah without a Nigerian entity?: Yes. Vandyvah can act as the Nigerian operational coordination point for overseas principals. A foreign company does not need a Nigerian subsidiary to appoint a Nigerian agent, though the consignee and commercial arrangements for a specific cargo still have to be correct in their own right.
How does reporting work across time zones?: Reporting is written, milestone-based and issued as events occur rather than only on request. A principal several time zones away opens the day with the current position rather than having to ask for it and wait a cycle for the answer.
Can Vandyvah be appointed protectively rather than as port agent?: Yes. Where the port agent is nominated by the counterparty, Vandyvah can be appointed separately to observe and report on the port call in the appointing party's interest.
Does Vandyvah maintain offices outside Nigeria?: Vandyvah is a Nigerian operating company, and that is the point: an overseas principal gets Nigeria-side execution and a single accountable Nigerian contact rather than a hand-off through a foreign branch.
What does Vandyvah need from an overseas principal to start?: What is moving and in which direction, the Nigerian port or location involved, the timing, the commercial terms determining who bears which cost, and one named person on the principal's side with authority to decide.

Get started

Establish Your Nigerian Operations Contact

Tell us what is moving and when. We will come back with the Nigerian operational path and the information we need from you.

Vessel deck photographed at sunrise on open water.

Your Shipment Is Global. Your Nigerian Port Execution Is Local.

Global Communication. Nigerian Port Experience. Local Execution.

Establish Your Nigerian Operations Contact Calculate Delay Exposure