The Federal Government has launched the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, a program to convert vehicles to run on compressed natural gas. 

The program was officially flagged off on Friday at the State House in Abuja.

The Chairman of the Presidential CNG Initiative Steering Committee, Zacch Adedeji, announced that the government has waived the Value Added Tax on purchasing CNG buses and is seeking duty waivers for the value chain. 

He said the program’s goal is to build a sustainable future by leveraging Nigeria’s abundant and affordable gas resources.

The government also plans to establish multiple conversion centers nationwide in the next two weeks. Adedeji stressed that the delivery of the CNG project demonstrates President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to environmental sustainability and economic growth in Nigeria.

“These CNG buses that will be handed over to the State House are the vanguard of a future where energy is cleaner and more economical,” 

“I’m happy to announce that there are currently seven conversion centers in Nigeria, and the government is actively working to establish more of them,” he stated. The effort will begin implementing these strategies this afternoon.

“This endeavour is about more than just converting automobiles; it is also about creating jobs. It displays President Bola Tinubu’s dedication to environmental sustainability as well as economic progress,” he said.

Speaking further, he said, “Furthermore, it gives me great pleasure to declare that we will be requesting duty exemptions for value-chain and waiving the Value Added Tax on CNG purchases in my capacity as your Chief Tax Officer, which I hold in conjunction with my role as Chairman of this initiative.

“The goal is to create a sustainable future by leveraging our own low-cost, clean energy source, gas.”

State governments have already indicated investment interest in the CNG buses, and Rivers State Government has acquired a good number to ease the state’s transportation challenges. 

The conversion cost varies depending on the model and type of vehicle, but the government is working to incentivize the cost for Nigerians.

The Managing Director of OMAA Motors, a partner in the PCNGI, lauded the patronage of made-in-Nigeria vehicles by the federal government, saying that it is a way of deepening industrialization.