WorldStage Newsonline– The Programme Coordinator, Presidential CNG Initiative (PCNGI), Mr Michael Oluwagbemi has confirmed that over $491 million investments have been attracted into AutoCNG, while more than 9,000 direct and 75,000 indirect jobs have been created in the last one year.
Oluwagbemi while addressing State House Correspondents on Monday said that the conversion capacity of vehicles from pure petrol and diesel to bi-fuel vehicles had increased from seven when the programme started to more than 200.
Oluwagbemi also said that the Conversion Incentive Programme (CIP) introduced by President Bola Tinubu in August 2024 had led to the employment of 3,000 new technicians.
He said that the programme was to enable one million free or subsidised conversion of certain classes of vehicles, especially commercial transports, rideshares and MDA vehicles to be done by PCNGI.
The coordinator said about 22,000 conversion kits were initially procured, while they started being delivered to the programme by the Ministry of Finance in October 2024.
He further stated that 10,000 conversion centres would be established by the end of the second quarter under this programme, having started in December 2024.
He said that the programme had been expanded by PCNGI to allow for discounts for public servants to finance the balance of costs of converting their vehicles, working with the Credit Corp.
“If you also recall, to demonstrate the efficacy of CNG and electric vehicles (EV) platforms, CNG buses and tricycles as well as EV buses were procured on our behalf by the Federal Ministry of Finance. A total of 655 buses were procured.
“About 421 CNG buses and 36 EV buses have been delivered so far, and the programme has deployed 405 buses, either as part of the settlement of terms with the NLC and TUC as part of the wage negotiations,” he said.
Oluwagbemi said that PCNGI was established to facilitate the adoption of natural gas and other alternative-fuelled vehicles, including electric ones.
This, he said, was in the light of the removal of fuel subsidy which led to a spike in transportation costs at the onset of the policy, as the president sought to rescue the country.
While stating that there had been a visible gap in CNG availability with longer queues in some locations, he, however, assured that the situation would be temporary.
He attributed it to the influx of CNG trucks and the over 30,000 CNG conversions undertaken by the private sector, which more than quintupled the CNG fleet of Nigeria.
“This naturally will put pressure on our gas infrastructure; but PCNGI is not relenting in finding solutions,” he said.
Oluwagbemi said that PCNGI had launched a scheme called ‘Refueling On lending Programme’ to provide refueling equipment to key conversion centres and refueling partners.
He said that 25 sites were billed to benefit from the scheme from 15 states.
“Already the first site in Kwara state is live, while Kogi, Ekiti, Rivers and Abuja will join them before May 1, 2025.
“By June 12, we shall have Kaduna, Abia and Enugu joining the fray, with Niger, Kano and Benue following shortly thereafter,” he said.
Oluwagbemi said that PCNGI embarked on intensive stakeholder engagement and public awareness campaign from May to November 2024 to convince the private sector to invest critical funds alongside the government’s investments.
This, he said, had stimulated demands by commercial vehicle operators and private vehicle users.
To further bolster infrastructure, he said that PCNGI had co-opted some private sector partners to deploy over 150 new refuelling locations in the next 18 months.
“NNPC has already deployed 12 sites, with eight to go this quarter, and approval for additional 100 sought and secured for the next 18-24 months.
“NIPCO has imported equipment for 32 daughter-station sites, with 22 in operation and eight under construction.
“Bovas has eight under construction, while AY Shafa has completed one, with nine under construction.
“Entities like Ibile Oil and Gas, MBH and Mikano are also investing in not just daughter-stations but also mother stations,” he said.
He said that the sole safety incident that occurred in Benin last year was a result of economic saboteurs engaging in illegal fabrication of CNG cylinders, stating that they had been arrested by the police.
Oluwagbemi said with Nigeria Gas Vehicles Monitoring System (NGVMS) in place, such an incident would be avoided, as only properly labelled and accredited vehicles with certified tanks would be refuelled.
“The necessary steps to launch the NGVMS are ongoing, and we expect it to be in place by year end. We won’t relent in ensuring the safety of lives and investments of participants in the sector,” he assured.
