Nigeria’s CNG Vehicle Fleet Grows To 120,000 As Government Targets 1 Million By 2030

The number of vehicles running on compressed natural gas (CNG) in Nigeria has risen to 120,000 from 11,000 in 2023, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas) Ekperikpe Ekpo said on Monday.

Speaking at a media briefing in Abuja, Ekpo said the country aimed to increase the number to about 1 million by 2030 and establish up to 1,000 CNG refuelling stations nationwide.

Meeting the vehicle target would require an additional 880,000 CNG-powered vehicles over the next four years.

Outlining developments since taking office in 2023, Ekpo said utilisation of the country’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) capacity had increased to about 87% so far in 2026 from 59% in 2023.

He said about 185 billion naira had been approved to settle verified legacy gas debts owed to upstream producers.

Nigeria is also seeking to expand access to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to 5 million households by 2030, he said.

Contracts have been awarded to 42 companies to commercialise gas that would otherwise be flared, as part of efforts to end routine gas flaring by 2030.

Ekpo said Nigeria’s role in the 2026 Gas Exporting Countries Forum ministerial meeting and its admission as an association country of the International Energy Agency reflected its growing influence in the global gas sector.

“Our focus remains clear: raise gas production to 10 billion cubic feet per day in the near term and 12 billion cubic feet per day (BCF/D) by 2030, strengthen gas supply to power, expand domestic utilisation and ensure our gas resources deliver jobs, industrial growth, energy security and prosperity for Nigerians,” he said.

Nigeria’s gas reserves had increased to 215.19 trillion cubic feet from 208.83 trillion cubic feet in 2023, Ekpo said.

Average gas production had also risen to about 7.5 billion cubic feet per day from 6.86 billion, while domestic supply had exceeded 2 billion cubic feet per day.

Four major gas projects had reached final investment decisions, representing investment commitments of about $3.5 billion, he said.

Ekpo said the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund had used 671 billion naira in public funding to attract about 1.6 trillion naira in private investment across 31 projects and 205 infrastructure assets.

The OB3 pipeline was fully complete, with pre-commissioning concluded, while the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano pipeline was about 95% complete, he added.