Nigerian Railway Generates ₦1.69 Billion In Q2 As Rail Travel Gains Popularity – NBS

The adoption of rail transport in Nigeria continues to grow, with revenues climbing to ₦1.69 billion in the second quarter of 2024, marking a significant 53.14% increase from ₦1.10 billion in the same period of 2023.

Ireporteronline reports that this information was disclosed in a report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Thursday.

In the previous year, the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) generated ₦1.07 billion from passenger services.

The NBS report shows that 689,263 passengers travelled by rail during Q2 2024, a 45.38% increase compared to 474,117 passengers in Q2 2023.

The report also highlighted a rise in freight transport, with 143,759 tons of goods moved by rail in Q2 2024, significantly higher than the 56,936 tons transported during the same period in 2023.

Additionally, the corporation transported 5,940 tons of goods via pipelines, an increase from the 2,856 tons recorded in Q2 2023.

Revenue from goods transported by rail surged to ₦537.36 million in Q2 2024, reflecting a remarkable 206.68% growth compared to ₦175.22 million in Q2 2023.

Pipeline transportation also saw a rise in revenue, generating ₦42.08 million in Q2 2024, up from ₦12.81 million in the previous year.

Other revenue streams contributed ₦994.68 million in Q2 2024, representing an extraordinary 5,206.68% jump from ₦18.74 million during the same period in 2023.

However, in the first quarter of 2024, Nigeria faced significant costs, spending 2,470% more on servicing railway debts than it earned from railway services.

The NRC also recorded record revenue of ₦2.12 billion in the first half of 2021, an increase of 31% from the same period in 2019. Gains mainly came from passenger services, particularly between Lagos and Ibadan on the new standard gauge rail line, though freight transport saw a decline.

This upsurge in revenue reflects the growing reliance on Nigeria’s rail system, both for passenger and freight transportation, as well as the increasing role of pipelines in the country’s logistics infrastructure.