The Federal Government has announced plans to establish an additional 500 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) infrastructure facilities across Nigeria as part of efforts to expand the adoption of alternative fuels and reduce transportation costs.

The government disclosed that about 160 CNG refuelling stations are currently operational nationwide, while another 170 facilities are at various stages of development and regulatory approval.

The Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles (Pi-CNG), Ismaeel Ahmed, disclosed this on Friday during the inauguration of a CNG Integrated Refuelling Unit in Karu, Abuja.

The facility was established through a partnership involving the State House, Pi-CNG and Electric Vehicles, and Rolling Energy.

Ahmed said Nigeria had moved beyond the experimental stage of CNG adoption, noting that private investors had committed approximately $2.6bn to the development of related infrastructure across the country.

He added that President Bola Tinubu had directed another round of infrastructure expansion, with about 500 additional units expected to be developed through the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund.

“This is almost our 106th station across the country in less than two years. This is not beginning any longer. The market has been proven,” Ahmed said.

He explained that the country’s CNG programme was now focused on expanding existing infrastructure to meet the demands of Nigeria’s large population and vehicle market.

“The investors are chipping in $2.6bn worth of private investment. Our President has ordered another round of about 500 infrastructure units to come in through the MDGIF. So I don’t think it’s a proof of concept any longer.

“It’s not the beginning. It’s a scale thing. Nigeria is 220 million people strong, 12 million vehicles. We are moving at a scale that we need to move. The work is in progress. What we need is to fasten up the scale,” he said.

According to Ahmed, another 170 refuelling facilities are undergoing development or awaiting regulatory approvals from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

He said the Federal Government expected additional infrastructure to become operational between now and early 2027.

The Pi-CNG chief executive urged more private investors to take advantage of opportunities in the sector, stressing that expanding the refuelling network was critical to making CNG accessible to more Nigerians.

He noted that the country’s existing petrol station network had taken decades to develop, with most facilities financed and operated by private businesses.

“It took us 60 years to get to 24,000 PMS stations, and like the Permanent Secretary said, these are all privately owned,” he added.

Ahmed also disclosed that the adoption of CNG-powered buses had helped reduce transportation fares by between 30 and 40 per cent on some routes.

He cited operations in Abuja, Lagos and Kano, including the Kano-Katsina route, where commuters were reportedly paying considerably less than they previously spent on transportation.

The expansion comes amid the Federal Government’s efforts to promote natural gas as a cheaper alternative to petrol following the removal of fuel subsidy in 2023, which significantly increased transportation costs across the country.

Despite Nigeria’s substantial natural gas reserves, much of the resource remains underutilised, with significant volumes historically lost through gas flaring.

Speaking at the inauguration, the Permanent Secretary, State House, Temitope Fashedemi, said the new facility reflected the government’s commitment to promoting alternative transportation fuels and encouraging private-sector investment.

He explained that the project was developed by converting an abandoned petrol dispensing station belonging to the State House into a CNG refuelling and vehicle conversion centre.

According to Fashedemi, the State House provided the existing facility, while Rolling Energy financed its rehabilitation and the installation of the necessary equipment without government expenditure on the project.

He said the arrangement demonstrated how government institutions could support the CNG programme by making available existing infrastructure and creating opportunities for private businesses to invest.

Also speaking, the Chief Executive Officer of Rolling Energy, Mubarak Danbatta, said the facility highlighted the importance of collaboration between government institutions and private investors in expanding Nigeria’s alternative fuel infrastructure.

The Federal Government is expected to rely heavily on private-sector participation to achieve its expansion targets and make CNG a more accessible option for vehicle owners and transport operators nationwide.

Lagos State is set to engage financial technology operators on taxation, digital infrastructure and innovation as industry stakeholders seek greater involvement in shaping the state’s digital economy agenda for 2027 to 2031.

The engagement will take place at a fintech town hall organised by My Card Global in collaboration with the Fintech Association of Nigeria (FintechNGR) on November 20 at The George Hotel, Ikoyi, Lagos.

According to a statement sighted by The PUNCH on Monday, the meeting will bring together senior government officials, technology entrepreneurs, investors and industry executives to discuss policies and economic conditions needed to support the growth of digital businesses in the state.

The town hall, themed “The Lagos Digital Economy Blueprint: Co-Authoring the Lagos Digital Economy Agenda 2027–2031,” is expected to provide a platform for government and private-sector stakeholders to jointly develop priorities for Lagos’ digital economy over the next five years.

Among the government officials expected at the event are the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani; Lagos State Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat; and the Chairman of the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, Ayodele Subair.

Their expected participation is significant to discussions around taxation, digital infrastructure and the relationship between government regulation and private-sector innovation.

Also expected is Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, co-founder of Andela, alongside founders, chief executives and other professionals in Nigeria’s fintech industry.

The proposed discussions will focus on taxation, digital infrastructure, innovation and long-term economic growth, with particular attention to the operating conditions affecting technology businesses in Lagos.

Participants are expected to examine how tax policies are designed and administered, the availability of infrastructure required to support digital services and the extent to which government regulations encourage or constrain innovation.

The organisers said the town hall was designed to encourage direct engagement between policymakers and businesses, with an emphasis on developing practical policy proposals rather than limiting conversations to general discussions about technology.

They added that the meeting would give fintech operators an opportunity to contribute their industry experience and expertise to policy development while allowing government representatives to engage directly with businesses affected by regulatory and economic decisions.

FintechNGR is a self-regulatory, not-for-profit and non-political industry association established to promote the development of Nigeria’s financial technology sector and provide a platform for engagement among industry stakeholders.

The association is also a member of the Global Fintech Hubs Federation and has engaged regulatory institutions, including the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Insurance Commission, on policies affecting the fintech ecosystem.

It has also maintained engagements with governments at different levels on issues relating to the growth and regulation of financial technology businesses.

My Card Global and FintechNGR said their objective was to promote a sustainable and inclusive digital economy through stronger collaboration between the public and private sectors.

The November 20 town hall is expected to produce policy recommendations for consideration in shaping Lagos State’s digital economy priorities for the 2027–2031 period.

The Federal Government has intensified efforts to address Nigeria’s estimated 15 million housing deficit, unveiling plans for a 5,000-unit residential estate in Lagos and proposing the construction of 100 housing units in each of the country’s 774 local government areas.

The initiative comes as Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, calls for sweeping reforms in the real estate sector, warning that weak regulation, fraudulent property transactions, bureaucratic bottlenecks and poor institutional coordination are discouraging investment and making homeownership increasingly difficult.

The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Muttaqha Rabe Darma, disclosed the Federal Government’s plans during the groundbreaking ceremony of the 5,000-unit Harmony Renewed Hope Housing Estate in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State.

Darma said President Bola Tinubu was concerned about the country’s growing housing shortage and had directed the ministry to explore ways of expanding access to affordable accommodation through partnerships with private developers, mortgage institutions and other investors.

Akinyelure recalled Mosadoluwa’s involvement in the delivery of 4,000 housing units in Karsana, Abuja, describing the participation of indigenous developers in large-scale residential projects as an opportunity to expand housing supply through public-private partnerships.

He called for greater recognition of local investors contributing to residential development, stressing that stronger collaboration among government institutions, mortgage providers and private developers would help increase housing availability and improve access to homeownership.