We welcome with enthusiasm the nice insights and evaluation shared by the LEADERSHIP Newspaper of their editorial of Wednesday, March 26, 2025. It’s our agency perception that authorities programmes and initiatives enhance with every honest criticism and inputs of all effectively which means residents. Albeit, we additionally consider strongly that such criticism will be improved by engagement and data sharing.
Little doubt, the editorial acknowledged the nice strides of the Presidential CNG Initiative (PCNGI) previously 12 months because it was launched by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR however notes some rising constraints particularly with respect to infrastructure making certain lengthy strains and waits for refueling by the hordes of latest CNG autos occasioned by the profitable conversion marketing campaign by the PCNGI. The momentary hole in provide ought to undoubtedly not be approximated to a disaster, and we urge the Management newspaper to somewhat look carefully on the inherent positives.
It have to be famous that simply barely twelve months in the past, there was hardly any CNG autos working in a lot of the main cities of Nigeria. Nigeria had simply seven practical dishing out stations, and plenty of of them had CNG for days and weeks with no demand. Spurred by the PCNGi targeted supply of the Conversion Incentive Program that’s delivering on the President’s promise to transform a million certified (principally business) autos at no cost, that has modified for the optimistic. With over sixty practical stations and a minimum of 175 new ones beneath improvement, Nigeria’s glory CNG days are right here.
The nation now boasts of fifty thousand CNG autos from a inventory of lower than three thousand only one 12 months in the past, with the personal sector main the best way in adoption through conversion and new CNG automobile purchases, the sub-sector has not solely seen an inflow of investments estimated at over 5 hundred million {dollars} however created 10,000 direct and over 90,000 oblique jobs consequently. For President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the CNG sub-sector is the brand new telecoms sector of this period. Over 2 hundred conversion facilities have been established by small enterprise homeowners within the final 12 months alone. It’s driving industrialisation, job creation, productiveness, vitality transition and investments all of sudden.
Naturally, this can’t be fully accomplished over night time. Painstaking planning and investments are required, pushed primarily by optimistic authorities insurance policies, incentives and allowance for personal innovation and entrepreneurship. Identical to cellphone towers didn’t immediately dot our panorama in a single day when GSM licenses have been awarded in 1999/2000, CNG dishing out stations and mom stations in addition to LNG crops and L-CNG websites for much flung locations will gestate steadily on account of the investments of the personal sector in collaboration with authorities incentives and help. Dropped calls are nonetheless frequent in Nigeria, no newspaper rushes to declare telecoms disaster consequently. We needs to be much less dramatic and somewhat help extra investments.
When it comes to incentives, the PCNGI working carefully with policymakers has been in a position to ship a tax free regime for the fuel and clear automobile sector that has spurred the large capital investments in refueling stations. Whereas this takes time to gestate as tools are procured, fabricated and deployed over 12-24 months at a time by every personal participant, we’re assured that work is being accomplished and succor is coming to the lots whose swap to a cleaner, dependable and safer different to PMS and Diesel are lengthy over due and a patriotic factor to do. Nigeria is a fuel nation that occurs to have some oil.
Along with taxes, the demand stimulation applications of PCNGI from conversion to CNG platform deployments by unions and personal sector transport operators have pushed demand and signaled provide making certain investments are dedicated by buyers. This mannequin is superior to contract pushed bazar that shall be inefficient if funding choices are being made by bureaucrats as a substitute of the personal sector. Non-public sector led useful resource allocation could also be slower however are extra environment friendly in the long term.
Extra immediately, the PCNGI has additionally designed, according to its mandate, focused intervention infrastructure financing program designed to spur the personal sector to deploy Modular Refueling Stations, that are containerised and extra appropriate for add-ons in present stations having labored with the regulators (NMDPRA particularly) to approve this technique late final 12 months. The Refueling On-Lending Program as it’s referred to as launched in December 2024, with the primary such website launched at Ilorin with Rolling Vitality lends financed tools to conversion companions who set up, function and increase to further websites.
Underneath this financing program, 25 websites are deliberate beneath Section 1 and Section 2, and a minimum of 15 states will immediately profit from this enlargement. Quickly, states like Enugu, Rivers, Kogi, Ekiti, Niger, Kaduna, Kano and Abia will all profit from this push to increase the CNG footprint. Commissioning of further 4 websites is deliberate inside sixty days, as personal sector companions work feverishly to ship on their guarantees. We’re doing these whereas enabling a brand new home Autogas market working the Gasoline Aggregation Firm of Nigeria and Nigeria Gasoline Advertising Restricted to make sure these stations get fuel molecules constantly at a very good aggressive worth.
Moreover, the PCNGI has additionally collaborated and coordinated with the Midstream Downstream Gasoline Infrastructure Fund (MDGIF), the platform for fuel infrastructure financing immediately enabled by legislation to fund this enlargement through a devoted fund aggregated from actions of the oil sector within the Petroleum Industries Act, 2021. In 2024, the MDGIF launched the primary 123 billion naira of investments most of which went into CNG initiatives. Certainly one of such given to Femadec Restricted is ready to ship twenty refueling websites at twenty federal universities beginning in Might 2025, which inevitably provides to the tapestry of fuel storage and distribution infrastructure in Nigeria. Firms like Ibile Oil, NSIK and Rolling have been additionally recipients of funds to set off Nigeria’s CNG revolution in a coordinated method. Therefore, the federal government can’t be accused of not planning sufficient for this actuality.
Incremental to all these, is an impending launch in accordance with the Honourable Minister of State (Gasoline) at a current public discussion board of further 4 hundred billion naira of investments beneath the MDGIF this 12 months. A few of these funds will co-invest with the PCNGI in Mini-LNG infrastructure to increase the footprint of Autogas to the far North of Nigeria that lacks pipeline fuel as we await the completion of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Pipeline that’s ongoing by the NNPCL. Undoubtedly, the federal authorities is working exhausting, taking duty and no CNG disaster is impending!
Whereas we notice the criticism that infrastructure ought to have existed earlier than the promotion of CNG or removing of subsidy – as LEADERSHIP newspaper erroneously alluded within the excessive, we equally notice that is additionally not sensible and runs in opposition to the grain of the evident advantage of ending that ruinous regime of siphoning the nation’s sources into the pocket of some within the title of subsidy. Offering succor through CNG is the best way to go, and we will’t look forward to perfection to ship the products of fine governance to the Nigerian folks. We should even be clear that authorities ought to catalyze, not get into the enterprise of CNG. It is for that reason the PCNGi have led by enabling NOT substituting the personal sector.
The sensible brief time period pains of ready for CNG in some cities will no sooner give technique to pleasure and satisfaction, as our unbelievable entrepreneurs and personal sector ship on the investments that they began doing final 12 months as authorities deepened its commitments to the sector with incentives and demand stimulation, which has enabled conversion and signaled suppliers to spend money on the CNG sector.
Already, the NNPCL by NNPC Retail has dedicated to over 120 new CNG stations with over 12 delivered already. NIPCO has dedicated to 32 new stations with greater than ten already delivered. Bovas has dedicated to eight, with all beneath building. AY Shafa has dedicated to 10 with one nearing completion right here in Abuja.
Numerous different independents together with Portland, MBH, Oke Keke, TGIS, Amara, Blue Stone and Femadec are additionally doing their components some with as many as 20 websites and others as little as one or two. All will add to the tapestry of Nigeria’s unbelievable fuel infrastructure.
The general public needs to be relaxation assured that our vibrant personal sector gamers are working with us on the Presidential CNG Initiative leveraging revolutionary financing to ship a promise of a fuel pushed economic system to decrease prices, improve productiveness and competitiveness of Nigeria to ship renewed hope according to Mr. President’s promise to all Nigerians. Pleasure is coming quickly. Allow us to hold religion.
Michael Oluwagbemi is the Program Director/Chief Govt of the Presidential CNG Initiative and writes from Abuja
