By Oluyinka Onigbinde
Findings by Shipping Position Daily newspaper have revealed that a total of 68,110 metric tons of cargo were moved by the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) from Lagos ports in the last quarter of 2024, covering October, November, and December.
This is according to data obtained by our correspondent from the NRC. The data revealed that only two terminals at the port—AP Moller Terminal (APMT) and ENL Consortium—handled rail movements during the review period, with APMT accounting for the overwhelming majority, while ENL recorded minimal activity.
A detailed analysis of the figures showed that APMT moved a total of 66,230 tons of containerized cargo across the three-month period—13,090 tons in October, 24,240 tons in November, and 28,900 tons in December.
On the other hand, ENL Consortium was only active in December, moving 1,880 tons of pipes.
In terms of operational frequency, NRC conducted a total of 55 train trips from the Lagos Port terminals. APMT accounted for 54 trips (10 in October, 27 in November, and 17 in December), while ENL had just one train movement in December.
Further breakdown of the data by month revealed that: October 2024 saw 13,090 tons of cargo moved solely by APMT via 10 trips. November 2024 recorded 24,240 tons moved from APMT with 27 trips. December 2024 witnessed the highest volume with 30,780 tons—28,900 from APMT and 1,880 from ENL—with a combined total of 18 trips.
The data revealed that all movements served destinations within Lagos using both standard gauge and narrow gauge tracks.
Meanwhile, the NRC has expressed readiness to recommence cargo movement between Lagos and Kano via the narrow gauge corridor under its Western District. This development was confirmed by the Managing Director of NRC, Dr. Kayode Opeifa, during an inspection tour of freight facilities in Ibadan, Oyo State recently.
Speaking at the Dugbe Ibadan Narrow Gauge Train Station, Dr. Opeifa stated: “The essence of this tour is to enable us to assess our readiness to handle the cargo side of our business as a business and logistics facilitator. We are happy with the extent of what we have seen and we can comfortably say we are ready to move any manner of cargo for any of our customers.”
He noted that preparations are in place to flag-off cargo services from the Dugbe end as soon as the service resumes. During the tour, which included stops at Omi Adio, Moniya Freight Park, and the Obafemi Awolowo Train Station, the NRC boss directed the acquisition of more land to expand cargo handling infrastructure near the proposed dry port area.
Opeifa also charged staff at the Western District headquarters to step up performance and boost the corporation’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), stating: “I can approve an improvement in your allowances once we improve our IGR. So, let us be committed to doubling our efforts.”
