Jigawa Commercial Drivers Decry High Cost Of CNG Conversion

As the two CNG refilling stations built in Jigawa State are expected to commence operation before the end of November, commercial vehicle drivers have decried the high cost of conversi on.

One of the refilling stations in Dutse, the state capital, has been completed and awaiting dispensing to motorists.

According to Mr Ibrahim Aminu Kazaure, director of Transport and Road Traffic at the Jigawa State Ministry of Works and Transport, the state government is committed to promoting the use of alternative energy in public, private, and commercial vehicles to reduce the cost of transportation.

He said the state government has built a CNG conversion centre, which is already to commence operations, and many public and private vehicles have been converted to dual fuel.
In addition, CNG refilling stations will be established across the state; one is located in Dutse, the capital.

The Director added that the state government has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding on a public-private partnership with manufacturers of electric tricycles to make them available and affordable in the state.

Ibrahim Kazaure maintained that the state government has involved the Nigerian Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) and the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) in promoting the use of CNG, which is cheaper than petroleum.

“I am optimistic that with available, affordable, and cheaper energy, the cost of transportation will reduce and enhance the movement of goods and services for social and economic development,” Kazaure stated.

In his reaction to the development, a commercial driver, Malam Sani Shuwarin, said drivers had been eager to see the CNG refilling station take off in the state.

He, however, decried the high cost of conversion and urged the government and relevant authorities to subsidize it to encourage the use of alternative energy in line with government policy.

“There are many commercial drivers in Jigawa State who want to convert their vehicles to CNG, but the high cost remains a stumbling block because many cannot afford one million, eight hundred thousand naira as the minimum cost of the work,” Shuwarin stated.

Mustapha Shehu Jahun, also a commercial driver who has been in the business for the past 30 years said if government is serious about reducing the hardship caused by fuel subsidy removal, the money gotten from the removal should be used to subsidize other services that can support the country’s sustainable growth, such as the use of CNG and other alternative energy .