The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is opening its approximately 4,000-kilometre rail network to qualified private operators willing to supply their own trains and pay access fees.
NRC Managing Director Kayode Opeifa announced the initiative on Tuesday, October 27, at the BusinessDay Mobility and Logistics Conference in Lagos, saying it would expand passenger and freight services while attracting private investment.
Under the arrangement, operators would provide their own locomotives, coaches and wagons to use existing railway infrastructure. Opeifa argued that publicly funded rail lines should accommodate qualified third-party operators, likening the model to motorists paying tolls to use roads.
The initiative builds on earlier efforts to encourage private participation in railway operations. In September 2022, the NRC announced plans for a track-access framework to attract investment and improve the use of existing infrastructure.
Lagos State has secured operating and track-access rights for its rail services through the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), while the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) holds a three-year licence to operate freight services on the Lagos–Ibadan standard-gauge railway. The licence runs from October 14, 2024, to October 13, 2027.
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The NRC also plans to rehabilitate the Lagos–Kano narrow-gauge railway and restore viable services towards Kano, with proposed extensions to Nguru in Yobe State and Kaura Namoda in Zamfara State.
Opeifa identified the proposed reconstruction of the Baro–Minna narrow-gauge line as another priority. The project would connect Baro Port in Niger State to the railway corridor at Minna, potentially improving the movement of agricultural produce and industrial goods through combined rail and inland-waterway transport.
Other proposals include extending the Lagos–Ibadan standard-gauge railway to Apapa and Tin Can Island ports, as well as linking Lekki Deep Sea Port to the national network through Ijebu-Ode and Sagamu in Ogun State, connecting to the Lagos–Kano line at Kajola.
The projects are intended to improve cargo evacuation and provide alternatives to road haulage, but their delivery will depend on funding and implementation.
The NRC aims to expand Nigeria’s approximately 4,000-kilometre railway network to 10,000 kilometres within five years and eventually to 20,000 kilometres, with private investment expected to support the expansion.
The track-access policy is designed to increase the use of existing rail infrastructure while the corporation pursues rehabilitation and new connections. Its success will depend on effective regulation, infrastructure maintenance and operators’ ability to deliver reliable services.