Indian Company Launches First Motorcycle Running on Petrol, Gas as FG Lists Free Conversion Centres

• Indian company Bajaj has launched the first CNG-powered motorcycles across the country
• The development comes as Nigeria is strongly advocating the use of CNG for commercial and private vehicles
• The Nigerian government has listed designated points for commercial vehicles to convert their cars free of charge

Legit.ng’s Pascal Oparada has reported on tech, energy, stocks, investment and the economy for over a decade.

Bajaj, one of the most prominent players in India’s motorcycle market, has launched CNG-powered motorcycles, which are considered the world’s first.

The new investment is a new compressed natural gas (CNG) model named Freedom.

Petrol prices rise to N750 per litre in Nigeria

About 100,000 motorcycles are in India monthly, and about 70% are commercial, meaning the fuel price is crucial to most riders in the country.

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The spike in fuel prices in the country is attributed to the rise in popularity of four-stroke motorcycles and the more popular two-strokes of the time.

The new move comes at a time when petrol and diesel prices are rising in Nigeria, with the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) saying that petrol prices rose to N750 per litre in June,

The Nigerian government also strongly advocates using CNG-powered vehicles and has offered free conversion points nationwide for commercial vehicles.

CNG-powered vehicles are 50% fuel efficient

According to reports, the new CNG-powered motorcycle can reduce their operations by 50%, with a starting price of $1,317, and when running on CNG, can propel about 9.3 horsepower in a 125cc engine, moving it to a top speed of 56mph.

The new motorcycle has a 2-litre auxiliary gasoline tank so riders can switch on the go.

When running petrol, the engine has a slightly top speed of 58mph, dropping to around 80 miles.

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CNG-powered motorcycles may become popular in Nigeria and other parts of the world as fuel prices rise along with inflation, which is about 34.19% in Nigeria.

FG Invites Nigerians to Convert Petrol, Diesel Vehicles to CNG

Legit.ng earlier reported that on Thursday, July 11, 2024, the Nigerian government declared that converting petrol and diesel-powered commercial vehicles to run on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) would be free. It disclosed this in Abuja after signing agreements with companies converting petrol and diesel vehicles to CNG.

The government also said transport unions would benefit from the initiative, asking them to submit their cars at the various centres.

According to reports, the programme director/chief executive of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, Michael Oluwagbemi, stated this after the agency signed agreements with the firms.

Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng

Source: Legit.ng