The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has assured Inland Containers Nigeria Ltd. (ICNL), Kaduna, of seamless rail movement of containers from Apapa Port to Kaduna and Kano.

The NRC Managing Director, Dr Kayode Opeifa, said this in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos.

He said this while receiving the ICNL's management team, led by its Managing Director, Omotayo Dada.

Opeifa said the corporation was willing to partner with major movers of large containers across the country.

He noted that the NRC had partnered with APMT to move containers from Apapa to the Inland Dry Port in Ibadan, Oyo State.

“The corporation will continue to design products for companies willing to use the rail to move its cargoes.

“With the ICNL partnership, the corporation hopes to move an additional 50 to 100 containers per day from Lagos to Kano via Apapa, Ijoko, Ilorin, Minna, and Kaduna.

The corporation's Director of Operations and Commercial, Mr Akin Osinowo, described ICNL as a long-standing customer of the NRC.

“The ICNL is a long-standing customer of the corporation, and some of the factors that led to the stoppage of cargo movement, especially on the narrow gauge, are being addressed.

“Issues such as insecurity, especially between Minna and Kaduna, and the washouts of several portions of the rail tracks, among others, are being aggressively addressed either by the corporation’s team of engineers or by the Federal Government,” he said.

Osinowo said the corporation was in talks with some manufacturers, such as Dangote Group and BUA.

He said the NRC would continue to service Lafarge Africa by taking its cement consignments from Ewekoro to Osogbo and Ilorin to boost the railway’s haulage capacity.

The NRC management and ICNL expressed their commitment to continuing their engagement and drawing a roadmap for the quick commencement of container freight to Kaduna and Kano on the western line.