2.1.1 Nigeria Port of Apapa Lagos State (2025)

Port Overview

The port of Apapa also known as Lagos Port Complex is the Premiere Port (Apapa Quays) is the earliest and one of the largest Port in Nigeria. It is situated in Apapa, Lagos State, the commercial centre of Nigeria. The Port was established in 1913 and construction of the first four deep water berths commenced in 1921. The Apapa Port is well equipped with modern cargo handling equipment and personnel support facilities making her cost effective and customer friendly. It enjoys intermodal connection – Rail, Water and Road. It boasts of four-wheel gate of about 8 meters for oversize cargoes and this has given the Port an edge over others in the handling of oversized cargoes.

For improved operational activities and efficiency, the landlord Port model was introduced by the Federal Government of Nigeria, and this later culminated in the concession of the terminals to private operators in 2006. Presently, the Lagos port complex has five (5) private Terminals with expert management and personnel that have both local and international experience in port operation. The Terminal Operators are:

SN

Terminals

Operators

Type of Cargo

Areas Covered

1

Terminal A & B

Apapa Bulk Terminal Ltd

Bulk

Berths 1-5, Sheds and warehouse

2

Terminal C & D

ENL Consortium Ltd

Break Bulk
General Cargo
Container

Berths 6-14,
Sheds 6-13

3

Container Terminal

AOM Terminal Ltd

Container

Berths 15-18 A

4

Terminal E

Greenview Dev Nig. Ltd

Bulk

Berths 19-20

5

Lilypond

AP Moller Terminal Ltd

Container

Lilypond Ijora

The port offers 24hrs operations and vessel turnaround time is impressive. All operational areas are guarded by both armed and unarmed security personnel, as well as with Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) for effective monitoring.

The Concession has resulted in vast expansions in line with international best practices in Port infrastructure bringing about efficiency and improved productivity.

Port Location and Contact

Country

NIGERIA

Province or District

Lagos

Nearest Town or City

with Distance from Port

Lagos Town (1km)

Port's Complete Name

Lagos Port Complex

Latitude

6.441913

Longitude

3.379464  

Managing Company or Port Authority

Apapa Bulk Terminal Ltd.

ENL Consortium Ltd.

Charles/08033253621/

Container Terminal: AP Moller.

Temilade/07034159529/ temilade.ogunniyi@apmterminals.com

Terminal E: Greenview Dev. Nig.Ltd.

08150983259

Lilypond Container Terminal: Lilypond

Temilade/07034159529/ temilade.ogunniyi@apmterminals.com

Management Contact Person

Mr. Okaga Charles Bamidele

ipcinfo@nigerianport.gov.ng

Tell +2348158794394

+2349062784264

Nearest Airport and Airlines with Frequent International Arrivals/Departures

Lagos Murtala Muhammed International Airport 

Air peace, Ibom air, AWA, Rwanda Air, British Airways, Delta Airlines, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Etihad Airways, KLM, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways,

Port Picture

2.1.1 Nigeria Port of Apapa Lagos State (1)

2.1.1 Nigeria Port of Apapa Lagos State (2)

Western Port

Lagos Port Complex (Apapa) Terminal Operators

No

Terminals

Operators

Type of Cargo

Areas Covered

Commencement Date

Dept(m)

1

Terminal A&B

Apapa Bulk Terminals

Bulk

Berths1-5 sheds & warehouse

3rd April 2006

13.5

2

Terminal C&D

ENL Consortium

Break Bulk & General cargo

Berths 6-14

Sheds 6-13

3rd April 2006

11.0

3

Container Terminal

APM Terminal Ltd

Container

Berths 15-18A

20th Mar 2006

13.5

4

Terminal E

Greenview Dev Ltd.

Bulk

Berth19-20

3rd April 2006

13.5

5

Lilypond

APM Terminal Ltd

Container

Not specified as it doubles as a truck holding bay

NA

N/A

Description and Contacts of Key Companies

Jetty Operators and Ownership

No

Name of Jetty

Location

Ownership

Product

1

Commodore Pool

Mid-Stream (OPRS)

NPA Active

Liquid bulk

2

NPA/NNPC

Midstream (OPRS)

NPA /NNPC Active

Liquid bulk

3

Atlas Cove Jetty (ACJ)

Deep Sea Barth

NPA/NNPC Active

Liquid bulk

4

Nispan Jetty (FolawiyoEnergy)

27 Creek Rd Apapa

Private Active

Liquid bulk

5

Lister Jetty

19 Creek Rd Apapa

Private (Active)

Liquid, General

7

Ijora Coal Wharf Jetty

Ijora Coal Wharf

NPA/NNPC Active

Liquid bulk

8

Bulk Oil Plant (BOP)

NPA Active

Liquid bulk

To improve the port operation services, the Federal Government of Nigeria adopted the port landlord model in 2006. Under this arrangement, the Terminal Operators are AP Moller Terminal Ltd. (APMT), ENL Consortium Ltd. (ENL), Apapa Bulk Terminal Ltd. (ABTL), Greenview Development Nigeria Ltd. (GNDL) and Lilypond Inland Container Terminal.

The Port has two (2) Logistics bases- Eko Support Services Ltd. and Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL) and eight (8) jetties. Sugar, Salt, and Flour are produced in factories belonging to operators within the port. Lagos Port Complex is registered as an ISPS certified Port facility with the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The port offers 24hrs operation and vessel turnaround time is impressive.

Port Performance

Within this port complex, there is a combined length overall of over 2000 meters and with a minimum draft condition alongside of 10meters. Vessel waiting time alongside and at anchorage is an impressive 1.5 days resulting in increased vessel turnaround time. The NPA call up system for trucks has greatly reduced the congestion on the access roads with trucks expected to wait at holding bays.

The Apapa port complex has in addition four tank farms for the storage of refined petroleum products. The port's container terminal has a twelve-monthly container capacity of over 1,000,000 TEU and 298 reefer plugs.

Seasonal Constraints

Occurs

Time Frame

Rainy Season

Yes

From the April to September

Major Import Campaigns

Yes

From October to March – Christmas & Chinese New Year

Other Comments

Other challenges of seaport operations in Nigeria as a developing economy are that of high cost of importation; the lack of export make ships to frequently sail back on ballast. The interference of government on operations of the ports is a bureaucratic bottleneck in decision making process which is centralized.

Handling Figures for 2023

Vessel Calls

+100,000

Container Traffic (TEUs)

2,029,823

Handling Figures Bulk and Break Bulk for 2023

Bulk (MT)

N/A

Break bulk (MT)

N/A

Discharge Rates and Terminal Handling Charges

For information on port rates and charges, please see the following link: http://nigerianports.gov.ng/port-tariffs/

Additionally, individual terminal operators levy tariff charges these rates can be viewed at the following links: 

http://port.enlconsortium.com/reports/Tariff%20Book.pdf

https://www.apapabulk.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ABTL-TARIFF-BOOKLET.pdf

https://www.apmterminals.com/en/apapa

https://www.greenviewterminal.com/terminal_details.php 

Berthing Specifications

Type of Berth 

Total Quantity 

Length 

(m) 

Maximum 

Draft (m) 

Comments 

(Operator) 

Conventional Berth  

13

2500m

Ranging 10.5 to 13.5m

ENL, GDNL 

Container Berth 

3

1005m

12.5m

APMT

Silo Berth 

10

N/A

11m

ABTL

Berthing Tugs 

Not specified

N/A

 Available on request

Water Barges 

Not specified

N/A

 Available on request

Port Handling Equipment

The port equipment is jointly managed by government and the Private sectors with government having the general oversite of the equipment.

Equipment

Available

Total Quantity and Capacity Available

Comments on Current Condition and Actual Usage

Dockside Crane

Yes

Multi-purpose x 5 (35MT) + 

Floating (250MT)

Operational &- in good condition

Container Gantries

Yes

Adequate for demand 

Operational &- in good condition

Mobile Cranes

Yes

Adequate for demand 

Operational &- in good condition

Reach stacker

Yes

Adequate for demand 

Operational &- in good condition

RoRo Tug master (with Trailer)

Yes

Adequate for demand 

Operational &- in good condition

Grain Elevator with Bagging Machines

Yes

Adequate for demand 

Operational &- in good condition

Transtainer

Yes

Adequate for demand 

Operational &- in good condition

Forklifts

Yes

Adequate for demand 

Operational &- in good condition

In addition to the container port facilities, the terminal is equipped to provide container transport via rail and to the township of Lagos state, there is also work ongoing to further extend the rail connection to other states of the federation from where trucks can pick up units for transport to the destination such as the 700 km Lagos to Calabar coastal high way.

Customs Guidance

There is a custom command domiciled here at this port and headed by an area comptroller. Container release process and operating timeline is the same as with the other port commands.

Terminal Information

MULTIPURPOSE TERMINAL

This is readily available however the infrastructure for ENL terminal appears to require some major upgrade on sections of the quayside with talks ongoing with the relevant government agency regards this. This is in addition to the warehouses which may require some structural integrity and hygiene upgrade. Specialization is mostly around the receipt of general cargos with capacity to handle only minimum TEUs onboard vessel.

GRAIN AND BULK HANDLING

The bulk terminal in managed by Apapa Bulk Terminal Limited which provides a spectrum of facilities such as open and closed storage, ship repair facilities, cargo handling and consolidation, equipment rentals and lease, bonded warehousing as well as multi-modal cargo distribution and delivery, thereby adding tremendous value to the logistics chain and meeting the expectation of all stakeholders.

However, its facility is primarily for use in servicing inhouse shipment activities with third party consideration to be assessed on case-by-case basis so as not to impact on its internal operational planning.

MAIN STORAGE TERMINAL

ENL presently operates 5 warehouse sheds measuring approximately 15000sqm which they use to store goods for multiple general consignees. They would only consider exclusive storage depending on its operational requirement during the period of review.

Storage Type

Number of Storage Facilities

Area (m2)

Bagged Cargo

15000mt

N/A

Refrigerated Cargo

Nil.

Only provided at APM Terminal

General Cargo

Subjective

Stevedoring

This is nominated to the port terminal by the Nigeria port authority. The number of vessel calls determined the amount of stevedoring company assigned to a port terminal. Responsibility for their actions will depend primarily upon who engages their services, the shipper of cargo, the owner of the ship or the charterers of the ship.

1. Good Intentions Services Limited

No 9, Rhodes Crescent, Apapa, Lagos Nigeria

0803 341 1862, 0815 742 6552, 01 454 1683

http://goodintentionsltd.com/ info@goodintentionsltd.com.

2. Micura Services Limited

No 29 Oyindamola Shogbesan St, Off Sunday Aghedo St, Ago-Palace Way, Okota, Lagos, Nigeria

0701 845 6292, 0805 115 0699, 01 735 8427

https://micuraservices.com, info@micuraservices-ng.com

3. Qualicare Global Logistics Limited

Royal Exchange Plaza, Suite 141B, Charity Bus-stop, Oshodi Apapa Express Way,, Oshodi, Lagos.

0803 578 9736, 01 761 8277,

https://qualicarelogistics.com/ info@qualicarelogistrics.com.

Hinterland Information

Goods are transported by Road and Rail from the port, Thus the Rail handling services is by APM Terminals Apapa. This terminal is one of the only container terminals in Nigeria with a rail link to other parts of the nation. Using the rail service, congestion could be avoided leading to faster turnaround time for cargo. The rail facilities mean that cargo can be loaded directly onto a train at the terminal in the hinterland. In 2013, a regular rail service was restored to run three times per week to the inland cities of Kaduna, 730 km (455 miles) and Kano, 960 km (600 miles).

In addition to making passenger rail travel from Lagos to Kano faster and safer in 2020, contracted and scheduled freight rail services were for the first time in a decade. In June 2020, two daily connections were introduced to Alagomeji Terminals in Yaba and Ijoko Terminals in Ogun State. Trucks can then be deployed to both locations to collect containers and return empties, which the NRC will convey back to the port. Rail transport is quick and reliable – free of traffic jams - and is extremely suitable for heavy loads and dangerous transport. One train takes an average of 20 lorries off the road. By using rail transportation from the port, this shall make freight transport more cost-efficient and significantly reduce traffic congestion and the negative impact on the environment.

Port Security

The Apapa port complex has a security set up that includes the port police and naval police, the navy, and men from the state security services. Amongst others, there are men from the military intelligence unit, the national drug law, and the Nigerian customs responsible for monitoring the port and its immediate waters. Although individual companies also use their security equipment to facilitate communication and monitor unauthorized activities.

Currently, all Ports in Nigeria are operating on Maritime Security (MARSEC) Level One (1).

Security

ISPS Compliant

Yes

Current ISPS Level
(Level 1 = Normal, Level 2 = Heightened, Level 3 = Exceptional)

Level One (1)

Police Boats

Yes

Fire Engines

Yes

2.1.1 Nigeria Port of Apapa Lagos State (2025)
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