According to the Debt Management Office’s reports on Nigeria’s external debt service payments, the Federal Government spent $548.67 million (or N246.11 billion using the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official exchange rate of N448.55 to a dollar) to pay off debts related to railways between 2016 and 2022.
$11.37 million went to the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project and $8.26 million went to the Nigeria Abuja Light Rail Project between January and December 2016, respectively.
By 2017, $21.53 million was spent on repaying the debt on railways, with $12.14 million going to the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project and $9.39 million to the Nigerian Abuja Light Rail Project.
The entire amount spent on repaying railway debt increased in 2018, totaling $63.92 million from January to December.
The Nigerian Abuja Light Rail Project cost $10.92 million, the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Idu-Kaduna Section) $50.81 million, and the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Lagos-Ibadan Section) $2.82 million.
In 2019, the federal government spent $74.25 million to pay off debts relating to railroads.
Nigeria’s Idu-Kaduna Railway Modernization Project consumed $49.91 million, the Lagos-Ibadan Railway Modernization Project consumed $12.68 million, and the Abuja Light Rail Project consumed $11.66 million.
The expense of paying off the railway loans increased the next year, costing Nigeria $121 million.
The Nigerian Abuja Light Rail Project cost $50.75 million, the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Idu-Kaduna Section) $48.97 million, and the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Lagos-Ibadan Section) $21.28 million.
The total amount paid on repaying railway debt increased to $122.92m by 2021.
The Nigerian Abuja Light Rail Project cost $50.88 million, the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Idu-Kaduna Section) $47.96 million, and the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Lagos-Ibadan Section) $24.08 million.
Total expenditures for servicing railway debts in the first quarter of 2022 came to $61.73 million, of which $23.58 million went to the Nigeria Railway Modernization Project (Idu-Kaduna Section), $13.60 million to the Nigeria Railway Modernization Project (Lagos-Ibadan Section), and $24.55 million to the Nigeria Abuja Light Rail Project.
However, no Chinese debt was paid off by the second quarter of 2022.
By the third quarter of 2022, a total of $63.33 million had been spent on paying off railway debts, of which $23.41 million had gone toward the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Idu-Kaduna Section), $14.95 million had gone toward the Nigerian Railway Modernization Project (Lagos-Ibadan Section), and $24.39 million had gone toward the Nigerian Abuja Light Rail Project.
The purchase of rolling stock and depot equipment from Nigeria for the Abuja light rail project cost $580,889, it was revealed.
In total, the Federal Government spent $125.06 million in 2022 to pay off railway debt.
As the government tried to make money from the railroad industry, the cost of servicing the government’s debt on the railways increased.
