FG Expands CNG Drive to Universities, Targets Cheaper Transport for Students

By Ladan Muhammad Nasidi

The Federal Government has stepped up efforts to promote Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as an affordable and cleaner transportation option, with universities across Nigeria set to benefit from a new campus mobility initiative.

The Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles (PiCNG and EV) disclosed this during a CNG awareness campaign at Bayero University Kano (BUK).

The programme, being implemented in partnership with FEMADEC Energy and the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund (MDGIF), is aimed at reducing the impact of rising transportation costs on students and staff of tertiary institutions.

Representing the Executive Chairman of PiCNG and EV, Barrister Ismaeel Ahmed, Louisa Afu said the initiative, known as Project SPROUT, would introduce affordable and cleaner transportation solutions to participating universities.

Afu said the project would involve the construction of CNG refuelling stations and vehicle conversion centres, alongside the phased deployment of CNG-powered buses and tricycles within and around university campuses.

According to her, the initiative is also designed to increase public understanding of CNG technology and encourage students to embrace cleaner transportation.

As part of the awareness campaign, free CNG bus rides were provided to BUK students, giving them an opportunity to experience the technology and ask questions about its safety, operation and benefits.

Afu urged the students to become ambassadors for CNG transportation, stressing that public acceptance would be important to the success of the Federal Government’s clean-energy transition.

She said, “The success of this initiative will depend not only on the availability of the infrastructure, but also on public understanding and acceptance of CNG as a safe, affordable and cleaner transportation option.”

The Project Coordinator of MDGIF-PiCNG projects at FEMADEC Energy, Engineer Ovoke Obire, said the organisation was supervising the construction of CNG stations and vehicle conversion centres in different parts of the country,she also said 1,200 subsidised conversion kits per institutions.

Obire said FEMADEC was also working with the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to secure the necessary licences for the facilities.

He explained that while MDGIF was providing funding for the construction of CNG stations and conversion centres, PiCNG was providing buses and tricycles to support transportation services in participating institutions.

According to him, subsidised CNG conversion kits would also be made available to university staff, with up to 1,200 kits expected to be provided for each participating institution.

Obire added that FEMADEC had trained personnel across several regions of the country to support the implementation, operation and maintenance of the facilities.

Also speaking, the Dean of Student Affairs at Bayero University Kano, Mukhtar Ibrahim Bunza, commended the initiative, saying it would help address transportation challenges faced by students.

Bunza expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the intervention, describing affordable campus transportation as an important measure for reducing the financial pressure on students.

He said the initiative would provide students with an additional transportation option while supporting efforts to promote cleaner energy use across university campuses.

The Federal Government’s campus CNG programme is expected to expand to other participating tertiary institutions as infrastructure, conversion centres and CNG-powered vehicles are deployed.