Nigeria is in a fuel crisis. We’ve got oil in abundance, but somehow, the prices are still soaring, and fuel queues are getting longer by the day. If you’re like most Nigerians, you’ve probably been asking: “Is there a way out?”
Well, it seems there is—Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).
The Current Petrol Dilemma
So why are we even here? In simple terms, we don’t have enough local refining capacity. Nigeria’s refineries are supposed to churn out 650,000 barrels of oil a day, but they just aren’t cutting it. This means we end up importing refined petrol at crazy costs. Add corruption and fluctuating global oil prices to the mix, and we’re left with a mess.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s inflation rate has surged to 24.1% as of August 2024. This marks a significant increase from the previous year, reflecting ongoing economic challenges, including rising fuel prices and the impact of global market fluctuations on the local economy.
Could CNG be the Answer?
Enter CNG. It’s being hailed as the solution to Nigeria’s fuel headaches. CNG is not only cleaner but also cheaper, and guess what? Nigeria has plenty of it! We’re sitting on the world’s 9th-largest gas reserve, which should make switching to CNG an easy win. But, how does it actually stack up against petrol?
Here’s a breakdown of the costs of fuelling a car with petrol versus CNG, assuming a daily driving distance of 50 km:
Fuel Type | Cost | Usage (per 100km) | Daily Cost (50km per day) | Cost/Month | ||
| ₦1000/ltr | 10 ltrs | ₦5,000 | ₦150,000 | ||
| ₦200/scm | 5 scm | ₦500 | ₦15,000 |
Yep, that’s a 90% cost saving. While fuelling your car with petrol will cost you ₦150,000 for one month, it’s only ₦15,000 for the same trip on CNG. Talk about saving money!
But Wait, There’s More
Apart from being lighter on your wallet, CNG is better for the environment too. CNG-powered cars produce 30% fewer greenhouse gases compared to petrol cars. Switching to CNG would also reduce the smog choking up our cities.
The energy independence CNG offers is another big deal. Instead of relying on imported petrol and getting smacked by global market prices, we could use our own locally sourced gas.
The Hurdles
As sweet as this all sounds, making CNG mainstream won’t happen overnight. The infrastructure isn’t there yet. At the moment, Nigeria only has a few CNG refuelling stations, mostly in big cities, and converting a car to CNG costs between ₦350,000 to about ₦600,000—steep for many Nigerians.
Even though most Nigerians find the cost of switching to CNG to be very high—let’s say the cost is ₦500,000—let’s compare the cost of gasoline to CNG over six months, assuming that the prior monthly analysis between gasoline and CNG above is accurate.
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Here’s a quick glance at how this could pan out:
Fuel Type | Cost | Usage (per 100km) | Daily Cost (50km per day) | Cost/6-Month | Conversion | Total |
| ₦1000/ltr | 10 ltrs | ₦5,000 | ₦900,000 | – | ₦900,000 |
| ₦200/scm | 5scm | ₦500 | ₦90,000 | ₦500,000 | ₦590,000 |
This means that you could save around ₦310,000 in the first six months and ₦810,000 every other six months by investing ₦590,000 to convert your car to CNG as opposed to spending ₦900,000 on petrol every six months.
Moving Forward
It’s clear CNG has huge potential, but we need the government to play a more active role in making it happen. Policies that encourage vehicle conversion, build more CNG stations, and raise public awareness are key. Countries like Pakistan and Iran have shown us it can work—they’ve successfully rolled out CNG programs by offering subsidies and building infrastructure.
In the end, if we’re serious about solving Nigeria’s fuel crisis and embracing a cleaner future, CNG might just be one of our best bets. So, what’s stopping us? Let’s get on board.
