Poor rail connectivity limits operations at Kaduna Port – MD

The Managing Director of the Kaduna Inland Dry Port, Mr Salami Razak, has blamed poor rail connectivity for the shortcoming of the port to attain its full potential.

Razak said this in a phone dialog with The PidomNigeria on Sunday.

In March 2006, the Federal Govt Council permitted the institution of seven inland dry ports, every with a capability to accommodate 165,000 twenty-feet equal items, to develop the nation’s cargo dealing with capability.

These amenities have been concessioned to personal sector operators with the expectation that they might improve the nation’s cargo dealing with capability, particularly in areas removed from the coast.

In the meantime, a report offered in August by the port’s financial regulator, the Nigerian Shippers Council, confirmed that solely three of the seven ports had been accomplished, whereas the remaining proceed to wrestle with assembly their operational obligations.

“Out of the seven permitted inland dry ports, solely three have been totally accomplished and operational, which embrace Kaduna IDP, which has a comparatively smaller capability of 5,000 TEUs (twenty-feet equal items), Dala IDP in Zawachiki, Kano State with 20,000 TEUs and the Zanfarawa IDP in Funtua, Katsina State with 10,000 TEUs,” the report said.

Recall that in 2024, the NSC signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Nigerian Railway Company to facilitate the motion of products to and deal with the challenges hindering the efficient rail transportation of products from seaports to the IDPs.

Nonetheless, giving an replace on the actions on the KIDP, Razak disclosed that although actions on the KIDP have improved since final yr, poor rail connectivity stays a significant problem.

“One factor that makes a dry port to be efficient in at present’s world is the rail motion of cargo from the seaport to the dry port. In that case right here the rail has not been as efficient as anticipated. So the mode of transportation from the rail angle has been down for now attributable to some technical points. Nonetheless, we now have been in a position to transfer a few of our cargoes by vehicles,” Razak said.

In line with him, the one means IDPs can cut back prices is by transferring cargoes by the rail as a result of it can cut back the price of transportation.

Razak talked about that KIDP is dropping 50 per cent of its supposed revenue as a result of poor functioning of the rail system.

“If you wish to quantify the associated fee it’s important to look from completely different sides together with the amount of the cargo and the transport price. However mechanically, we’re dropping about 50 per cent of our revenue to the rail system not functioning optimally. I assumed workplace in June 2024 and for the entire of 2024, we dealt with 5,000 TEUs of containers and we moved most of them by vehicles,” he concluded.