Thousands of containers are lying idle at Nigeria’s busiest seaports, exposing a deep imbalance in the nation’s trading structure.
Several containers which brought goods into Nigeria are struggling to find products to export. As a result, hundreds of containers lie idle at the nation’s seaports for months, leading to traffic gridlocks.
Experts say the situation shows that Nigeria is struggling to match the rate of its dry cargo imports with exports.
“These shipping companies, with their liners that bring in containers, have more imports than exports,” said Suileman Ayokunle, a freight forwarder, told BusinessDay.
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Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) show that over the last nine years, oil and minerals have consistently made up around 70 percent of total imports.
Non-oil exports have struggled, dipping to as low as 4.4 percent in 2018 and hovering just around 5.6 percent last year.
In the first quarter (Q1) of 2025, dry cargo made up nearly 75 percent of total imports, while exports remain far behind at just 15 percent. This disparity results in containers coming into Nigeria full but remaining behind.
The situation is clogging up Nigeria’s port system. A recent report by the Sea Empowerment and Research Centre (SEREC), a maritime consultancy, estimated that up to 100,000 empty containers are now occupying terminal space across Nigeria’s ports.
The report said the situation is already costing the country up to $500 million annually in delays, inefficiencies, and lost trade opportunities, according to data it obtained from the Importers Association of Nigeria.
Shipping lines-govt agreement
According to Ayokunle, shipping lines have an agreement with the Nigerian government which stipulates that every vessel that brings in 100 full container loads (FCLs) should return empty containers which have not been deployed to use.
But shipping companies, Ayokunle explained, are choosing to hold onto their empty containers, hoping to eventually fill them with export goods, which violates Nigeria’s standard operating procedure but makes economic sense for the liners trying to escape losses.
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Freight cost
Freight cost to return an empty container to origin ports, including to China and Europe is estimated at $4,000 for a 20-foot container and as high as $6,000 for a 40-foot container.
“When exports don’t come fast enough, many liners prefer to reroute. Some of them prefer going back to Ghana, or going back to other West African countries to pick exports to fill the gap in the vessel before they return to their points of destination,” Ayokunle further said.
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), when contacted for comments, said the data needed further disaggregation.
“The 100,000 abandoned containers should be better classified. We have to know which ports are involved. Is it just Lagos ports, that is Apapa and Tin Can?” queried Seyi Eyawe, an official of the Nigerian Ports Authority. “When it comes to issues of abandoned cargoes, including containers, we have Nigeria Shippers’ Council and Customs services primarily at the forefront.”
The Customs Act 2023 classifies containers as temporary imports. If not returned within 90 days, they become dutiable, but enforcement is weak. Customs often resorts to auctioning to clear the space.
The Nigeria Shippers’ Council, designated as the port economic regulator, denied the specific number but did not dispute that empty containers are a major issue.
Lack of penalties
SEREC berated the lack of penalties for delayed container returns, noting that shipping companies currently impose average demurrage charges of N10,000 daily on Nigerian shippers after the standard grace period lapses.
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Office spaces
However, where there is decay, there is creativity. In Apapa and nearby areas, rusty empty containers have been put to good use by the locals and have become architecture, forming office spaces, roadside shops, and container homes.
SEREC think tank recommended that the federal government introduce a demurrage tax on a percentage basis on all empty containers not returned within the official three-month period.
