With a strong focus on automation, the terminal deploys technology and robotics to streamline various processes, including cargo handling, gate operations, and tracking.
This has boosted overall port operations by reducing human errors and improving productivity. A significant infrastructural boost is the soon-to-be-completed Coastal Road and the recently approved construction of the 7th Axial Road, which brings light to the tunnel of accessibility to the port.
The two roads are strategically important for port connectivity, making cargo evacuation from Lekki Port convenient and fast. Spanning a distance of 25 kilometres, with completion projected for 2028, the 7th Axial Road —a dual carriageway —will provide a critical alternative route, offering direct access to the A121 Lagos-Benin Expressway.
The road is expected to reduce travel time for cargo evacuation from Lekki Port significantly. Currently, trucks travelling from LFT to Lagos via the Coastal Road and the A121 corridor spend an average of 4.5 hours on the journey, while the 7th Axial Road is projected to cut this travel time significantly, improving cargo flow, reducing turnaround time, enhancing port efficiency and lowering overall logistics costs.
These developments will further boost turnaround time at LFT, considering the multiple access corridors and ongoing road upgrade initiatives underway, including the federal government’s consideration of connecting the axis to the national rail network.
This, if made possible, will enhance trade by facilitating the evacuation of cargo from the terminal to other parts of the country as well as to neighbouring landlocked countries.
In terms of time efficiency, the terminal holds a reputation as the most efficient maritime gateway in the country, with truck service time at its gates standing at 1.1 hours, a figure that no Lagos-based terminal can match. Over the last two years, dignitaries who have visited the terminal have consistently praised its technological advancements.
The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr Abubakar Dantsoho, who recently made his official visit to Lekki Deep Sea port commended the management of Lekki Deep Seaport and LFT for their unwavering commitment to operational excellence and port optimisation.
He went on to state that the NPA will benchmark Lekki Port and LFT’s cutting-edge infrastructure and advanced technology in its broader port modernisation programme.
Dantsoho highlighted the port’s growing transhipment volume, which is meeting the maritime demands of neighbouring countries and supporting the NPA’s objective of achieving economies of scale.
This, he said, enhances Nigeria’s global competitiveness, stimulates demand, boosts foreign exchange inflows, and contributes meaningfully to the country’s year-on-year trade surplus, ultimately strengthening the national economy.
He also highlighted how LFT’s fully automated operations align perfectly with NPA’s goal to implement the Port Community System (PCS), which will pave the way for the long-awaited National Single Window (NSW), designed to streamline the nation’s trade processes.
Dantsoho emphasised that the LFT and Lekki Port’s ability to berth super post-Panamax vessels and deliver rapid cargo and vessel turnaround makes it a strategic asset in enhancing Nigeria’s export competitiveness. He said this is particularly for agro-allied products as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) continues to gain momentum.
The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Okezie Kalu, had during the inauguration of the Lekki Port access road, underscored the economic potential of the Lekki Port and LFT, which he said will handle 1.2 million TEUs yearly in its first phase, scaling up to 2.7 million TEUs, with the capacity to host mega vessels of up to 18,000 TEUs.
He noted that it will generate over $201 billion in federal and state revenue and create over 169,000 direct and indirect jobs. Kalu emphasised that the port, LFT and their supporting infrastructure will reduce congestion, enhance turnaround time, and help Nigeria reclaim maritime business lost to neighbouring nations.
