The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), and the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas (Pi-CNG) on Friday, set the tone for deeper penetration of the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
The Managing Director Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Dr. Kayode Opeifa, described the ceremony which took place at the Mobolaji Johnson Mega Station at Yaba, as a critical leap towards a sustainable future for the railway industry.
He also described the partnership as another befitting celebration of the second anniversary of the Tinubu administration which last year commenced the advocacy for cleaner natural energy transition to power transportation.
Dr Opeifa who recalled the journey of the Initiative as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s response to the removal of petrol subsidy, said evidence has shown that the adoption of the CNG, would ultimately lead to significant drop in carbon footprint, a cut in the soaring rate of food inflation and boost the economy.
He described the Renewed partnership between NRC and the Pi-CNG as a significant step towards a cleaner, more efficient rail transportation system as the rail, which is the safest cost effective means of transporting goods and passengers with the least carbon footprint relies on traditional fossil fuel.
“It is time to explore alternative options that benefit both our operations and the environment. Today, we strive to further reduce our carbon footprint by converting our locomotives and other diesel powered equipment to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).”
Opeifa said the CNG will help cut down on maintenance cost by between 60-70%, contribute to improved air quality and reduce dependence on petrol and diesel, apart from stimulating economic growth by creating jobs and provides significant savings for the railway industry.
‘This collaboration will save the corporation between N50 million to N100 million monthly, translating to N1.2 billion yearly, which can be deployed to other areas of need for the corporation,” he said.
Opeifa said the collaboration with the Pi-CNG will focus on four key areas: conversion of existing diesel locomotives, and especially all diesel generators and operational vehicles across all its offices to training of students at the Corporation’s training centres as conversion technicians.
Other collaboration include facilitating the distribution of transportation of CNG-Powered tricycles and conversion kits across the country, and the deployment of CNG buses for last mile shuttle services, thereby enhancing intermodal mobility and efficiency at the rail stations.
He lauded the Pi-CNG for donating CNG -powered bus to the NRC, and the branding of coaches by Pi-CNG to create awareness for the initiative.
On his part, the Programme Director of the Pi-CNG Engr. Michael Oluwagbemi
said the count of CNG-propelled vehicles have moved from less than 50,000 last year, to over 100,000 while the Programme hopes to convert no fewer than 250,000 and hoping to achieve the Presidential mandate of conversion of one million commercial buses to CNG by 2026.
He said has had to confront misinformation about the CNG and it’s massive adoption by Nigerians are true testimony that Nigeria is ripe for a new transition energy to power its transportation needs.
He said since last year the Pi-CNG has attracted over $500 million investment in the establishment of Mother and Daughter stations as platforms for ensuring the CNG penetration, apart from creating 25,000 direct employment in the CNG ecosystem.
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He said the Pi-CNG would love to establish daughter stations for the NRC at Ebute Metta and Abuja, to enable the use of gas either to power the locomotives of to provide gas to power rail operations.
Oluwagbemi said the Pi-CNG would be leveraging on the NRC to establish more conversion centres across the country in order to encourage greater adoption and access to the product by Nigerians. He added that the idea is to have not less than 250,000 centres across the country, from the about 50,000 as at May, this year.
In her goodwill message, the Managing Director of the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), Engr Abimbola Akinajo, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for removal of subsidy on fuel and diving straight for the CNG.
She said: “We are excited at LAMATA by that pronouncement by Mr President. We have been waiting for this because it gave us the necessary backing.”
She said LAMATA would continue to partner with Pi-CNG in its initiatives aimed at promoting cleaner and environmental friendly energy in the country.
Others who also spoke in same vein lauded the partnership which they said would further promote greater visibility and enhance the penetration of the CNG by motoring public.