The Government of Enugu State is set to introduce Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses as part of the initiative to preserve the environment and also make transportation affordable for citizens.
Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, and the Commissioner for Transportation, Dr. Obi Ozor, disclosed this to journalists after a meeting of the State Executive Council during the weekend.
Onyia said, “Recall that earlier in this administration, the governor signed the Enugu State Electricity Law and that Law requires that an independent regulator will be set up, but there will also will be a supervising ministry that will handle all our engagements in the energy space and also in our mineral resource space.
"Considering the level of mineral resources availability in Enugu State, the government had decided, at the end of EXCO today, to now create this Ministry and the mandate includes oversight of most of our investment opportunities within the solid mineral space and also to help catalyse investments in the energy space. EXCO resolved that this new Ministry would take effect immediately.”
Also, commissioner for transportation Dr. Obi Ozor noted that the state was not only introducing CNG buses, but as well build supporting infrastructure to ensure ease of operation and safety of commuters.
Ozor emphasised that the government is also doing its part to not only invest more in buying CNG buses, but also to support private sector investment in the transportation space.
“The Executive Council resolved that it is very important for the state and her citizens to begin the process of transitioning from petrol to CNG which saves about half of the cost of fuel in our transportation, thereby reducing the cost of transportation for our people.
“All these are geared towards bringing safe and affordable and sustainable transportation system. "This ties into the infrastructure that is underway – the bus terminals, improved bus shelters, the internet of things and gadgets in these buses that will allow us to be able to know where our citizens are and make sure that they are safe from any incident.
“The state is also creating an enabling environment to attract the right investors within the CNG space and the state has already done that with partnership with Greenville Energy,” he stated.
He stated further that the government is making significant strides in expanding Nigeria's energy infrastructure adding that a massive CNG mother station is currently under construction at Ugwu Onyeama, designed to serve the entire South East region.
This central hub , he said would be complemented by smaller daughter stations, resembling traditional filling stations, whose construction is set to begin within weeks.
