…Authority is committed to enabling growth and investment
…PCNGi has made 255 operational conversions converting over 40,000 vehicles to CNG in 18 months with $500 million in capital investment.
-Felix Douglas
The Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN), held a virtual webinar uniting government, industry and financial stakeholders to discuss investment opportunities in Nigeria’s Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) transport sector. The focus was on natural gas under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), regulatory progress and strategic initiatives supporting the country’s adoption of CNG mobility.
In his welcome address, Chairman of MEMAN, Mr. Huub Stokman was of the view that MEMAN is committed to accelerating CNG adoption through strong stakeholders’ collaboration, policy incentives, and infrastructure development.
The MEMAN helmsman highlighted the importance of public education on CNG’s cost savings, environmental benefits and safety reaffirming MEMAN’s role in linking policy with market growth.
Delivering his opening remarks at the webinar, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo commended MEMAN’s alignment with Federal Government Decade of Gas (DoG) agenda. He highlighted key enablers for auto CNG growth which includes: transparent marketing pricing, public private partnership and innovative funding to address infrastructure gaps.
He disclosed that the government is committed to working with stakeholders to ensure supply reliability, fair pricing and resilient gas economy that supports industrial growth and sustainability.
On the aspect of regulatory and pricing framework, the Authority Chief Executive (ACE) of Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Engr. Farouk Ahmed, spoke through Engr. Adedayo Oyinlola on NMDPRA role in setting market-based prices. The country has 210 plus tcf proven gas reserves and critical infrastructure projects, 2025 domestic base price set at $2.13/MMBtu, concessionary CNG pricing at $1.57/MMBtu for five years. Also NMDPRA targets to increase daily gas supply from 3.58 to 5 bcf/d and support for NGEP, PCNGi, and development of a domestic LPG pricing framework.
The Authority reaffirmed its commitment to enabling growth, stability and investment across the gas value chain.
Engr. Michael Oluwagbemi, Programme Director, of Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGi) reiterated that it has driven remarkable progress since October 2023 by establishing a demand-driven, private-sector led model, supported by government facilitation and incentives rather than direct control.
According to Oluwagbemi, PCNGi has made key achievements which include: 255 operational conversion centres nation-wide, converting over 40,000 vehicles to CNG in 18 months. The programme has also attracted $500 million in capital investment with 40 CNG refueling stations operational with 172 under construction. It has trained over 2,500 technicians and distributed more than 1000 conversion kits.
PCNGi has invested $160 million invested in 2025 showing sustained monthly growth of 29%.
In his closing remarks, Dr. Adewoye Ayotunde, Chairman Gas Committee of MEMAN called for the adoption truly cost reflective pricing to ensure the viability of the industry.
Dr. Ayotunde urged faster permitting processes and temporary regulatory waivers to accelerate the deployment of CNG stations across the country. He added that the importance of collaboration among government bodies, investors and marketers to foster a liberalized gas economy. Highlighting the urgency, he described the auto gas rollout as an emergency that requires immediate acceleration.
The Chairman Gas Committee supported temporary guidelines, provided they do not compromise safety and quality standards. He recognized the current pricing framework as a balanced middle ground suitable for the early stages of market development.
Dr. Ayotunde commended critical contributions of the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN) and praised all the panelists, organizers and participants for their roles in the webinar.
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