NRC, APM Terminals Commence Rail Service At Apapa Port
APM Terminals Apapa and Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) have restored the evacuation of containers by rail from the Lagos Port Complex, Apapa, as part of efforts to decongest the roads.
APM Terminals originally restored the rail service in 2013, running three times per week to Kano and Kaduna. Speaking in Lagos, the General Manager, External Affairs of APM Terminals, Apapa, Daniel Odibe, said the terminal and the NRC have developed a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), which would bridge communication gap and ultimately lead to more efficient cargo evacuation by rail.
He said the new SOP was facilitated by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC). Odibe said, “We wish to thank the Nigerian Shippers Council for facilitating this Standard Operating Procedure directed at improving service delivery to shippers and consignees. This is an important milestone for the port. It is something we have always asked for. We want to have a Standard Operating Procedure for receiving trains into the terminal and servicing them. It definitely helps planning when you have adequate information ahead of time.”
According to him with the closure of a section of the Apapa Bridge for repair works, the resumption of cargo evacuation by rail will help in reducing backlog of cargoes at the port.
