As the federal government promotes the use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles due to the continuous rise in petrol price, motorists across the country have said that they cannot afford the high cost of converting their vehicles, especially cars, to CNG.
Investigation by Leadership Sunday across Nigeria showed that it costs between N900,000 and N1.5 million to convert a car from petrol to CNG with the kits inclusive.
Findings also showed that most states have no accredited centres for the project. A few states which have CNG conversion centres said they were yet to take off.
In Kebbi State there is no CNG centre.
The newly established Kebbi Investment Promotion Agency (KIPA)'s director-general, Dr Muhammad Kabir Kamba, said the establishment of such centres was in the pipeline.
He said the state was awaiting the signing of four executive bills by Governor Nasir Idris to give the agency the opportunity to create the centre.
In Kaduna State, there are three CNG conversion centres located on Kaduna-Abuja Expressway, Kakau; Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) in Kaduna town and in Basawa Road, Palladan in Zaria.
One of the workers at the Kaduna-Abuja Roadway said the patronage, particularly commercial vehicles, was above their expectation.
He called for more sensitisation campaigns for motorists to appreciate the benefits.
In Kogi State, the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative which has been flagged off in Lokoja, the state capital, has yet to start the conversion of vehicles to CNG-powered.
In Niger State, there is no CNG conversion centre as the state government was the first to purchase CNG buses to boost intra and inter-city transportation.
The chief press secretary to the governor Bologi Ibrahim told LEADERSHIP Sunday that there are three centres under construction in the state.
He said two are under construction at the Niger State Transport Authority (NSTA) premises in Minna and another in Suleja through the federal government's initiative.
Our correspondent reports that many residents of Gombe State now resort to buying rechargeable motorcycles to evade petrol at exorbitant rates.
A motorist, Adams Kushi, said, "I will convert my vehicle to CNG if I know where to find a centre in Gombe."
He cited the crippling effects of fuel price hikes on livelihoods, forcing many to park their vehicles or opt for commercial transport.
There are no known CNG conversion centres in Sokoto State, as of the time of filing this report.
Motorists also corroborated the findings by our correspondent, who moved round town in search of any CNG conversion centre(s) within the state metropolis.
A motorist, Bala Bodinga, assumed that, what the system entails is to buy a gas-filled cylinder and connect the gas to the vehicle engine with a pipe.
A government official, who spoke to our correspondent but does not want his name in print said, "we are just hearing the CNG conversion story the same way everybody is hearing.
"It is alien to us. We have not been assigned any role to perform and I don't know to what level state governments are involved where the conversion systems are operational."
In Jigawa State, there is no centre for the CNG conversion project, neither in the Dutse capital nor in any of the major towns across the state.
However, Governor Umar Namadi has promised to collaborate with the federal government and independent marketers to ensure the establishment of such centres in the state.
In Benue State, the commissioner for power and transport, Mathew Omale in a telephone interview said Benue is not among the pilot states for the CNG project.
Plateau State has yet to have conversion centres or installation of CNG kits in Jos, the state capital.
Investigation by our correspondent revealed that there is no approved CNG conversion centre in the state.
In Kano State, the newly established automotive training and CNG conversion centre by the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) was commissioned by the federal government on October 21, 2024.
The Kano centre, when in operation, will focus on skills development and commence training in CNG conversion, to empower the youth and support the community.
Located at the Gainawa Gundutse, Karfi in Kura local government area, the training and conversion exercise is yet to commence.
There are two CNG conversion centres in Ilorin, Kwara State. They are Rolling Energy CNG and KWASU CNG.
The rate of public response to convert vehicles to CNG is low in the state. It costs N1.5 million to convert a vehicle to CNG. Some motorists said the rate is not affordable.
In Cross River State, the commissioner for transportation, Pastor Ekpeyong Cobham, who is in charge of the project, said the state has the highest conversion with 13 pits making it possible for the technicians to simultaneously convert 13 vehicles at a time.
Cobham stated that the price for conversion is affordable, stressing that a vehicle with four-cylinder engine will be converted for N800,000, whereas six cylinder-engine is changed at N950,000, and eight cylinders engine goes for N1.1 million
In Oyo State, there are five centres.
An operator, Adewale Ogundeji, said following explosions in some parts of the country, there had been questions about the safety standards and regulatory oversight of the exercise.
He said a four-plug conversion costs N1.3 million, while a six-plug costs N1.5 million.
He said switching to compressed natural gas can help car owners save money and also contribute to a more sustainable environment.
The Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI) on Friday, October 4, 2024 launched and handed over seven initial CNG conversion centres to the Ekiti State government.
The public response to CNG-powered vehicles could not be ascertained as some of the centres were yet to commence operations.
Ogun State has two CNG conversion centres located within the Abeokuta metropolis and it's functional for commercial vehicles only.
The two centres, one at the state government's works yard and the other at Olorunsogo area of the metropolis, were yet to exhaust the federal government's free conversion kits, hence, it was difficult to ascertain the rate of public response to the initiative and the conversion cost.
The Akwa Ibom State government has yet to embrace the alternative presumed safer energy - CNG, LEADERSHIP Sunday has learnt.
Checks by our correspondent revealed that though the governor had made good his pledge to augment the food palliatives, the CNG initiative has yet to take off.
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Edo State has one CNG conversion centre in Aduwawa-Auchi Road, Eyaen in Benin City.
Though most motorists, including commercial bus drivers in Benin, lauded the CNG initiative especially the rise in the cost of premium motor spirit (PMS), they lamented the high cost of the conversion.
Osaro Idubor, a commercial bus driver popularly referred to as "Tuketuke" said the conversion to CNG ranged from N620,000 to N720,000 while another motorist, Monday Osagie, said he paid N900,000 to convert his vehicle to CNG.
Except for the Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing (IVM) factory at Nnewi, Anambra State industrial town, there is no other CNG conversion centre in the state.
Though LEADERSHIP Sunday gathered that IVM factory has started manufacturing CNG-fitted vehicles, and had demonstrated capacity to convert vehicles to CNG fitted with a presidential vehicle, no motorist in the state has gone to the factory for the conversion of his or her vehicle to CNG-fitted.
Motorists have continued to lament the lack of CNG conversion centres in Osun State.
Investigations revealed that no town in the state, including Osogbo, the state capital, has the much-desired facility.
A director in the Ministry of Transport, Delta State, who craved anonymity, said it would take the state government six to seven months to start CNG-conversion operations.
While most motorists feigned knowledge of CNG, they however expressed discouragement as they were told it costs N1.5 million in other states of the federation.
