The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, today, opened a 5.2 million standard cubic feet per day Compressed Natural Gas plant to power passenger cars and city buses, in Lagos.
The CNG plant, located at the Ilasamaja Industrial estate in Lagos, was built through a partnership between NNPC Gas Marketing Limited and Transit Gas Nigeria Limited, owned by Axxela. “From Gas to Prosperity: CNG for All’, represents a critical turning point in the development of affordable, sustainable, and secure energy sources in the country,” said Ekpo.
The Minister described 2024 as a historic year for Nigerians, stressing that through his courageous decision to eliminate fuel subsidies and promote the acceptability and broader use of gas, President Bola Tinubu has brought about several fresh beginnings in the lives of Nigerians.
He said that although, the elimination of the Premium Motor Spirit subsidy has brought difficulties, it has also given us a once-in-a-lifetime chance to invent and adopt more economical, efficient, and sustainable energy alternatives.
Ekpo noted that the use of CNG as a transport fuel is a mature technology used globally as it is the cleanest burning fuel in terms of Nitro-oxide and soot emissions. While it can be employed to power passenger cars and city buses, CNG passenger vehicles emit 5-10 per cent less CO2 than gasoline-powered vehicles, the minister added.
Earlier in his remarks, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Mele Kyari, said to maintain energy security and provide more access to CNG by the Nigerian populace, NNPC reached a final investment decision with Axxela Limited to deliver six CNG mother and service stations plants and stations of 5.2mmscfd capacity each, in selected locations spread across the six geopolitical zones including the FCT to ease access to bulk CNG.
He stated that the move was in addition to NNPC Retail’s phased deployment of CNG in over 100 stations across the country as well as other joint venture partnerships on CNG.
In particular, Kyari revealed that the commissioning of the NNPC CNG Station in Ilasamaja was part of NNPC’s efforts to grow domestic gas supply and utilisation by deploying gas infrastructure nationwide.
▪︎Cover image: Ekperikpe Ekpo, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas)