FG Urged To Fast-track Spread Of CNG In North

The federal government has been advised to hire more competent firms to fast-track the spread of its Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative, especially in Northern Nigeria.

The call was made during a roundtable organised by the Development and Safety Professional Association on Saturday in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.

In a communique made available to LEADERSHIP, the regional coordinator of the group, Engr. Bukar Hashimu Goni said, “The CNG initiative of President Bola Tinubu has been a noble and commendable policy which seeks to, among other things, alleviate the pressure of subsidy removal on the masses, but this effort is rather being subverted by those who should amplify it. We have watched how other private firms, engaged by the federal government, are professionally handling the project in other parts of the country. The same cannot be said about Rolling Energy, which is saddled with the responsibility of ensuring the success of the CNG in northern Nigeria.”

He continued, “As a professional association, since the takeoff of the CNG initiative, we had patiently tracked, monitored and assessed all private firms engaged by the federal government, but the company handling the Northern part of the country seems to be the least qualified and ill-prepared for such a massive project. Their presence is not visible across Maiduguri and other parts of the region. For instance, all three of their sites in Maiduguri are incomplete, and there is no realistic timeframe for their takeoff. In Kano, the most populous city and commercial nerve centre, which is crucial to northern Nigeria’s development, the company has no presence. In Kaduna, the story is the same. The much-touted facility in Kwara is such a small site with insignificant input compared to the size and magnitude of CNG demand”.

In his remarks, the association’s technical director, Architect Mansur Walid, said, “ We unequivocally appeal to the president, the NSA, and other security agencies to beam their searchlight on the activities of the company handling the north, whose majority management are Indians. We suspect foul play and deliberate sabotage in terms of the CNG initiative.”

Arcn Walid continued, “The fact that other firms are doing well in some parts of the country, especially southern Nigeria, why then is Rolling Energy unable to effectively takeoff in northern Nigeria?”

Following the allegation, when LEADERSHIP contacted an official of the company, one Isa Sarina, for comment, he said he was not authorised to speak.