Nigeria’s FG instructs 9,000 fuel stations to retrofit for gas storage, dispensing

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Federal Government of Nigeria, FGN, has directed all category one petrol filling stations which are about 9,000, to immediately begin the installation of modular add-on facilities or full-scale stand-alone plants for storage and dispensing of clean energy- gas- to Nigerians nationwide.

The directive which was issued by the DPR, initially to about 27% of registered fuel stations, is with the objective of deepening the utilization of Liquefied Petroleum Gas, LPG, Compressed Natural Gas, CNG, Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG and Autogas, as alternative fuels for Nigerians.

According to the Director, DPR, Mr. Sarki Auwalu, the directive was in furtherance of Federal Government’s aspirations to provide affordable fuels and ensure domestic gas penetration and expansion in Nigeria, while entrenching price freedom for the citizenry.

Mr. Sarki Auwalu, in a media statement said the total number of category one retail outlets in the country have been identified as suitable for immediate integration of add-on facilities based on robust safety assessment and technical considerations by the DPR.

The media statement said, “the DPR has also approved the deployment of skid-mounted modularised/containerized, LPG/autogas handling systems and other intrinsically safe systems for gas storage and handling to promote affordability, accessibility, and availability of the products.”

On the other hundreds of thousands of fuel stations that DPR classified into categories two and three, the statement urged thus, “all operators of retail outlets in categories two and three whose facilities do not meet the minimum requirements or do not have sufficient land area are encouraged to apply for stand-alone LPG, CNG, LNG or autogas facilities (full-scale or modular) under an incentivized regulatory regime”

The Director disclosed that, the DPR is encouraging investments in auto conversion, production of composite cylinders and ancillaries (valves, hoses, etc.) for domestic LPG, CNG, LNG and autogas penetration.

Auwalu expressed the enthusiasm that retail outlet operators and other investors would leverage the opportunities in the domestic gas sector to grow their wealth and create employment for Nigerians.