Nigeria Customs Gets Approval to Spend N20 Billion on CNG Vehicles, Facilities in Remote Areas
- Nigeria Customs Service is set to spend N20 billion on the purchase of CNG-powered vehicles after receiving approval
- This is in line with a recent directive from the Federal Executive Council that all vehicle purchases must be CNG, solar or electric
- The federal government maintains its commitment to encouraging a smooth transition to a CNG-powered economy
Legit.ng journalist Ruth Okwumbu-Imafidon has over a decade of experience in business reporting across digital and mainstream media.
The Nigeria Customs Service is set to spend N20 billion on procurement of Compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, and the construction of facilities in remote areas of the country.
This is part of the NCS budget presented to the finance minister.
Speaking at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Monday, Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun reported that the Customs Service will also be spending N1 billion to finance life insurance policies to be handled by brokers and underwriters.
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He noted that those were the two transactions originating from the Nigeria Customs Service.
FEC mandates agencies to only buy CNG-vehicles
This is in line with a recent directive from the Federal Executive Council (FEC) mandating that government agencies and parastatals will only purchase vehicles, generators and tricycles powered by electricity, solar or CNG.
According to TheCable reports, the Shippers Council, Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), and an agency of the marine and blue economy had brought requests for approval to purchase hundreds of operational vehicles.
While they wanted fossil fuel-powered vehicles, they were given conditional approvals to only purchase in line with the directive.
Nigeria Customs announces 30-day free clearance
Nigeria Customs Service recently announced 30-day free clearance of goods at the port, following the CBN's adjusted exchange rate.
This means that goods will only be held at ports for 30 days for free, after which it will attract a fee to clear them.
This new rule will facilitate port decongestion across the country, and ease business for importers and businessmen.
FG drives CNG initiative in Nigeria
Recall that the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) also recently launched new CNG retail outlets across Lagos state and FCT.
Free conversion centres have also been launched to get Nigerians to take advantage and make the shift to CNG.
The Nigerian government also launched a platform for Nigerians to access tricycles at affordable costs, following the launch of 2,000 tricycles on October 1, 2024.
The Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, said interested Nigerians should apply on the portal so that they can be paired with aggregators or owners directly under the Presidential CNG Initiative (Pi-CNG).
FG to launch 150 new CNG retail outlets
Meanwhile, the Federal government continues to drive the adoption of Compressed natural gas with recent initiatives to boost the availability of the product and the presence of refill stations.
The government announced during the recent event to commence construction of mini LNG plants in Kogi state, that 150 new retail outlets will be delivered to Nigerians before the end of 2025.
This is part of larger plans to drive the conversion of one million vehicles from fuel to CNG before 2027.
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Source: Legit.ng
