NNPC Steps Up Gas Supply to CNG Operators to Crash Transportation Costs Amid Rising Petrol Prices

In a strategic move to cushion the biting economic effects of recent petroleum price hikes, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has announced major measures to increase gas allocation and distribution to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) operators across the country.

The intervention comes on the heels of surging pump prices, which have seen petrol climb above ₦1,350 per litre following recent wholesale adjustments and international crude volatility. With transportation fares and logistics overheads triggering ripples across consumer markets, the federal oil firm is moving to fast-track the country’s energy transition roadmap by making clean, cheaper gaseous fuel readily available to motorists.

According to internal corporate briefings, NNPC’s upstream and midstream subsidiaries are scaling up domestic gas delivery volumes to feed processing plants, mother stations, and daughter conversion facilities. The initiative aims to resolve the lingering supply constraints and infrastructure deficits that have often resulted in long queues at select retail CNG dispensing points in major cities like Lagos, Abuja, Benin, and Ibadan.

Energy analysts have praised the intervention, noting that widening the margin between expensive petrol and cost-effective CNG is critical to keeping the mass transit sector viable. While petrol maintains an average retail cost exceeding ₦1,300 per litre, regulated and subsidized CNG alternatives have hovered around ₦380 per standard cubic metre (SCM), offering commercial transport operators up to 70 percent in operational cost savings.

Transport unions and commercial drivers have repeatedly called for accelerated deployment of conversion centers and reliable feedstock supply to protect transport workers from external petroleum shocks. By bolstering the domestic gas supply chain, NNPC aims to build a resilient buffer that encourages nationwide adoption, dampens inflationary pressures, and provides everyday Nigerians with a sustainable escape from recurring fuel price volatility.