Rt. Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo is the Honourable Minister of State, Petroleum Resources (Gas)
…Rideshare vehicles get 50% conversion discount
The Federal Government on Friday moved to significantly lower the cost of fare charged by E-hailing taxis with a 50 percent conversion discount to Compressed Natural Gas, CNG My greatest challenge Is creating opportunities to show that arts can be commercialized in many….
The government said it believes that lowering the cost of transportation across the country would translate into a lower cost of living for Nigerians.
Speaking at the launch of the Rideshare CNG conversion incentive programme and my CNG app, the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas), Hon Ekperikpe Ekpo urged rideshare drivers to take advantage of the incentives being offered by the government.
Mr. Ekpo explained that “the rideshare sector is a vital part of our urban transportation system, providing flexible and cost-effective mobility solutions to millions of Nigerians, particularly our youth. However, the rising costs of traditional fuels have posed a significant challenge to both drivers and passengers, often leading to higher fares and reduced access to affordable transportation.
“The CNG Conversion Incentive Program, in conjunction with the My CNG App, is a bold response to these challenges. By offering a 50% discount for rideshare drivers upon sign-up and scheduling through the My CNG App, we are not only making CNG a more viable option but also easing the financial burden on drivers. This will translate to more affordable transportation options for the users”, he added.
He pointed out that by choosing CNG, rideshare drivers would not only be saving costs but also contributing to the larger goal of national development.
Earlier, the Programme Director/CEO, Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, PCNGI, Engr Michael Oluwagbemi highlighted the significance of the e-hailing taxi service in the economy, disclosing that in 2020, the sector generated $290 million in revenues with seven million people using the service.
Oluwagbemi said: “Indeed, we know that transportation is responsible for about 14% to 15% of an average family’s spending. It contributes about 1.5% to the overall economy, with an average of 5.1% growth on a year-to-year basis”.
He pointed out that in Nigeria the vehicle-to-population ratio is about 60 vehicles to 1,000 people “with 41.1% of the about 12 million vehicles in Nigeria are privately owned, with vehicle ownership concentrated in our urban areas.
“This means that the real opportunity for moving people around in an environment where there is no vehicle ownership is this ride-share technology that has become available across the land in the last 10 years. The global ride-hailing market is valued at about $130 billion as of 2020, and is anticipated to reach a value of $230 billion by 2026, registering about 8.75% growth between 2021 and 2026.
“In 2020, revenues generated in Africa alone from the ride-share industry was about $2.5 billion, with Nigeria accounting for about $292 billion of that, and also accounting for 15% of the 48.6 million people that use ride-shares.
“This is quite significant. That means Nigeria accounts for about 7 million people using ride-share that used ride-share in 2020. Our young people in our cities, from Lagos to Ibadan, to Ilorin to Ado Ekiti, to Lokoja, Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, Uyo, Port Harcourt, Aba, Onitsha, all the way to Benin City, to Maiduguri, all utilize ride-share services”.
Oluwagbemi explained that the use of CNG would reduce cost of fueling for the cab drivers by about 70 percent, significantly lower their cost of operation and fare price for passengers.
On his part, the Managing Director, NASENI Portland Gas Limited, Mr. Folajimi Mohammed said the Presidential CNG initiative has been instrumental in “paving the way for innovations that will reshape the way we think about transportation and energy consumption in our
country”.
Mohammed noted that the Rideshare CNG Conversion Incentive Programme is part of efforts to encourage the adoption of CNG among rideshare drivers.
“This program is a game-changer, offering substantial incentives for drivers to convert their vehicles to CNG, thereby reducing emission, greenhouse gas emission, and
lowering fuel costs as well. It is a win-win for both the environment and the economy, and we at Portland Gas are fully committed to supporting this initiative in every way possible”, he added.