Low Asset Utilisation Undermines Nigeria’s Logistics Sector – Haul247 CEO

Nigeria’s logistics industry is facing a significant productivity crisis, with low asset utilisation emerging as a key bottleneck hindering growth and efficiency. According to the Chief Executive Officer of Haul247, Nigeria’s leading digital logistics platform, the idle time of trucks and other transport assets is driving up operational costs, limiting service delivery, and eroding competitiveness across the value chain.

At a recent industry roundtable, Haul247’s CEO highlighted how the current mismatch between demand and capacity has left a large portion of the nation’s fleet underutilised. In many cases, transport vehicles sit idle for days—or even weeks—awaiting cargo assignments or clearance through congested ports and border crossings. Such downtime, he stressed, imposes wage liabilities, maintenance expenses, and overheads without generating revenue, dragging down profit margins across operators.

He noted that one of the major contributors to underutilisation is the inefficiency at terminals and customs checkpoints. Frequent delays in clearance procedures, poor scheduling, and bureaucratic bottlenecks result in long dwell times for cargo and the vehicles assigned to them. With turnaround time extended, fewer trips are completed in a given period, reducing overall fleet productivity and escalating per-trip costs.

Haul247, which connects cargo owners with fleet owners through a technology-driven platform, reports that many trucks on its network average daily usage rates as low as 30–40 percent of capacity. That means that on a typical ten-hour operational day, vehicles may only be earning revenue for four hours—barely enough to cover leasing costs and fuel expenses, let alone maintenance and profit. This contrasts sharply with best practice logistics operations, where asset utilisation may exceed 70 percent.

The CEO further explained that route inefficiency is exacerbated by suboptimal matching of cargo loads. Trucks often make return trips empty—or at low load factor—particularly on domestic routes where demand is thin. Even on high-volume corridors like Lagos–Abuja and Port Harcourt–Onitsha, scheduling gaps and poor coordination between shipper and carrier result in vehicles traveling under capacity, leaving potential earnings unrealised.

Fuel costs also weigh heavily. With international diesel prices translating into rising local pump prices—and costly foreign exchange overlapping with regulatory duties—drivers frequently idle their vehicles to delay incurring high fuel costs. For fleet owners, this strategy backfires: vehicle downtime increases, maintenance cycles are delayed, and operational yields shrink further.

Haul247’s CEO emphasized that the impact is felt throughout the logistics ecosystem. Cargo owners face longer delivery times and unpredictable schedules, which disrupt supply chains for manufacturers and traders. Freight forwarders contend with unpredictable availability and high surcharges as carriers attempt to recoup losses. Meanwhile, investors evaluating logistics infrastructure viability see low utilisation as a poor signal for capital deployment.

To address the crisis, the Haul247 platform is deploying algorithm-based load-matching tools to reduce empty-backhaul miles and improve route efficiency. These tools aggregate available cargo and tanker opportunities, matching them with available truck capacity in real-time. According to the company’s data, clients using the platform have seen a 20–30 percent increase in monthly utilisation rates and a marked reduction in turnaround time.

But the CEO stressed that digital platforms alone cannot solve the structural issues. He called for broader reforms in policy and public infrastructure. These include modernizing port terminals, automating customs processes, improving road conditions on key transport corridors, and enabling seamless cargo tracking with interoperable systems. Each of these reforms, he argued, would reduce non-productive waiting time and increase overall efficiency.

He also urged fleet owners to collaborate more closely with regulators, insurance firms, and logistics tech players to reduce lead time and financial risks. In particular, leveraging leasing and insurance packages linked to digital GPS systems could lower idle risk and make asset deployment more precise and accountable.

Industry experts agreed that financing constraints also limit utilisation. Access to structured working capital, asset leasing, and insurance coverage remains difficult, especially for small and medium owners. Without capital to maintain fleets, replace aging trucks, or invest in GPS tracking, many operators cannot sustain reliable utilisation levels—even when cargo is available.

Another critical recommendation from Haul247’s leadership is capacity-building. Drivers, dispatchers, and logistics coordinators require training in route optimization, regulatory compliance, and digital tools. Improved skills and oversight allow operators to convert more hours into productive trips, minimizing asset idle time and improving service reliability.

Forward-thinking manufacturers and retailers are already responding. Some are adopting just-in-time delivery models and partnering more closely with tech-enabled carriers who can guarantee tracking and predictable scheduling. This kind of demand alignment is essential if utilisation is to improve meaningfully.

Ultimately, the CEO believes logistics can evolve from a traditional trucking business to a high-performance, tech-enabled, solutions-oriented sector. Realising that vision, however, depends on coordinated efforts between government, private platforms, fleet operators, and cargo-generating industries.

With demand for e-commerce and consumer goods rising, Nigeria’s logistics sector could add billions to the economy—if unused capacity is harnessed. If trucks move more goods, more often, the net impact will be lower delivery costs, improved supply chain reliability, and greater competitiveness for Nigerian businesses.

Until that happens, low asset utilisation will remain a silent drag on the country’s transport and trade infrastructure—known but not yet fully addressed.Only through technology integration, capacity investment, and regulatory reform can Nigeria drive utilisation up toward global benchmarks and unleash the full potential of its logistics economy.