Nigeria’s response to the fuel subsidy removal is fast becoming one of the country’s most ambitious clean energy transformations. The Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI) has attracted $491 million in investments and generated more than 9,000 direct and 75,000 indirect jobs in just one year.
Programme Coordinator, Michael Oluwagbemi, disclosed this while addressing State House correspondents. According to him, Nigeria’s vehicle conversion capacity has soared from just seven centres at the programme’s inception to over 200, with a target of 10,000 conversion hubs before the end of the current quarter.
The Conversion Incentive Programme, introduced by President Bola Tinubu in August 2024, has fueled the momentum. With 22,000 conversion kits already delivered and 3,000 new technicians trained, the goal is to convert up to one million public and commercial vehicles for free or at subsidised rates.
To demonstrate the initiative’s practicality, the government procured 655 buses—421 powered by CNG and 36 electric. So far, 405 of these have been deployed, many as part of government palliatives during labour union wage negotiations. Public servants have also been offered discounted vehicle conversions through a financing arrangement with Credit Corp.
Despite the programme’s success, Oluwagbemi acknowledged that rising demand has created temporary supply bottlenecks, with longer queues at CNG stations in some areas. He attributed this to a surge in CNG trucks and over 30,000 conversions by private operators, which has significantly expanded the CNG vehicle fleet.
In response, the PCNGI has rolled out a Refueling On-lending Programme, supplying equipment to key conversion and refueling centres. Fifteen states have been selected, with sites already operational in Kwara and others in Kogi, Ekiti, Rivers, and Abuja expected to come online before May. Additional states, including Kaduna, Abia, Enugu, Niger, Kano, and Benue, will follow by June.
Oluwagbemi said the government is partnering with the private sector to establish 150 new refueling stations over the next 18 months. NNPC has already launched 12, with plans for more. Companies like NIPCO, Bovas, AY Shafa, Ibile Oil and Gas, MBH, and Mikano are also investing heavily in both mother and daughter stations.
Also, addressing safety concerns, he referenced an isolated incident in Benin involving illegal cylinder fabrication. The perpetrators have been apprehended, and a new monitoring system—the Nigeria Gas Vehicles Monitoring System (NGVMS)—is set to launch by year-end to ensure only certified vehicles are refueled.
Oluwagbemi added that the initiative is not just about converting engines but transforming the entire transport landscape.
