Nigeria’s quest for Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as alternative fuel for premium motor spirit (PMS), popularly called petrol, has come to stay, with the opening of 12 new service stations on Thursday in Abuja and Lagos.
Performing the official opening of the CNG stations, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mallam Mele Kyari, said there were plans to construct three Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) stations in Ajaokuta and 100 CNG sites across the country as part of the drive to bring CNG closer to Nigerians.
“There is simply no way to turn back on delivering CNG for all Nigerians. It is the right thing to do. Is it late? Yes, but we will make progress. We will cover the gap to ensure that the volatility we see with Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) does not apply to gas,” Kyari said.
He commended President Bola Tinubu for supporting the drive for domestic gas utilisation aimed at delivering cleaner and cheaper alternative source of energy to Nigerians.
While assuring that the NNPC Ltd would continue to deliver more strategic gas projects for the benefit of Nigerians in line with the Presidential CNG Initiative of bringing prosperity to all Nigerians, Kyari reaffirmed the determination of the NNPC to guarantee the nation’s energy security at all times.
The Managing Director, NNPC Retail Limited, Huub Stokman revealed that in the next one year, NNPC Retail would have launched over 100 CNG sites, including 16 NNPC Gas Marketing and NIPCO Gas JV sites.
“CNG provides Nigeria with affordable alternative to existing available fuel products. It will be about 40% cheaper than petrol in Nigeria and with continued investments, it will become a significant part of our energy mix,” Stokman added.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo said the commissioning of the stations would not only provide economic benefits, by creating jobs, it would also stimulate local economies, and contribute significantly to Nigeria’s national goals of reducing emissions and combating climate change.
The Chairman of the NNPC Board of Directors, Pius Akinyelure, said increased CNG adoption would foster economic benefits by reducing fuel costs for consumers and businesses alike.
Following the removal of fuel subsidy and the declaration of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiatives, NNPC Limited has taken the lead in the deployment of Auto-CNG Stations across Nigeria.
Already, NNPC Gas Marketing Limited, a subsidiary of NNPC Limited, in partnership with NIPCO Gas Limited has developed an Auto-CNG rollout plan for construction of 35 CNG stations across the various geographical zones of Nigeria.
