The federal government’s Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (P-CNGi) is targeting the creation of about 100,000 jobs from an estimated one million conversion of vehicles from petrol to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).
This was just as the initiative commenced conversion of vehicles into autogas across the country following the distribution of free kits.
The Programme Director of PCNGi, Engr Michael Oluwagbemi, speaking in Abuja, said, “25,000 technicians need to be enabled across 1,000 conversion centres. We need 2,300 refuelling stations, but we currently have only three. We also need additional LCNG plants across the 14 to 15 core Northern states that cannot immediately get piped natural gas.
“We need mini-LNG plants probably in two or three locations across the country; one in each of the geo-political zones, and we also need over 2,500 vector pipeline trucks. It’s important to know that people will be driving these things and enabling them.
“We are making sure that investment is going to the corridor with the most users because 90 per cent of Nigerians ply three major transit corridors: namely, Lagos to Kano transit corridor, the Calabar to Benin transit corridor and the Lagos to Benin through Lokoja corridor. When we do that, there will be a reduction in the cost of food and transportation.”
It was gathered that in Lagos, commercial drivers trooped to the conversion centres across the state to change their vehicles to CNG.
On account of the distribution of kits, motorists had been advised to visit various conversion centres to have their vehicles converted free of charge.
At one of the centres visited by our correspondent, Portland Conversion Centre on Ikorodu Road at Ojota, no fewer than 30 vehicles were on ground waiting to be converted.
Speaking with our correspondent, Ayodele Jeleel, a member of NURTW, Mile 12 branch, said he was prompted to bring his vehicle to the centre because the drivers had carried out the conversion and that it was found to be cheaper compared to running on petrol.
The Chief Operating Officer (COO) at Portland Gas Limited, Michelle Ejiofor, said, “CNG is a cleaner energy.”
The Commercial Operations Manager at P-CNGi, Omoh Imoukhuede, in an interview with our correspondent, reiterated that the CNG programme had come to stay.
