Firm partners with NARTO, drivers’ union on gas usage

The Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN) is partnering with the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) and Petroleum Tanker Drivers Union on how to maximise the benefits of gas in the country.
Mr Olalekan Ogunleye, Managing Director of GACN during a visit to NARTO office in Abuja on Thursday, said the benefits of deepening gas usage could not be overemphasised.
Ogunleye said GACN would organise a forum and exhibition in Kano on July 29 to sensitise Nigerians on ways in which gas would be beneficial to them.
“As an industry we are happy to engage with you, address your concerns and demonstrate how you can benefit from gas.
“What we have in mind is to have a small working team with you, who will look at the benefit in cost, maintenance and lifespan of the vehicle, the cost implication and the alternatives.
“We need to have data from you, we need to demonstrate that there is a national logistics platform for trucks on transit and intimate you on the pros and cons of the funding options among other things.
“Our major deliverable for this meeting is to introduce this concept and to seek your support in setting up a working team which will then go into details and address all the issues,’’ he said.
According to Ogunleye, GACN is set up intentionally by government as a not for profit company, with an annual budget paid by buyers and sellers of gas.
He said the mandate of the organisation was to expand the use of gas in Nigeria.
“So as much as we expand the market, our shareholders who are gas producers get more business and our budget and funding is paid through an annual contribution.
“Our function is to focus on the use of gas in the domestic space and how we can use gas to expand opportunities.
“Gas is the ultimate tool that can bring about economic solution because of its flexibility. We just need to continue to engage to see how we can deepen its utilisation.’’
While reiterating the achievements of GACN, Ogunleye said it had all the flexibility to come up with solutions for any organisation as it would work and agree on the necessary deliverables.
He reiterated the importance of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline project, saying that the pipeline was the biggest gas delivery infrastructure in Nigeria in the last 50 years.
He said:“ We decided to have an engagement to demonstrate that while the pipeline construction is going on, there are solutions.
“At the same time the federal government auto gas committee, under the vice president reached out to us to work with them on auto gas.
“Last week, we had the engagement in Kano to start this discussion on a scheme that will lead to the trucks and operations leveraging on gas.’’
Responding, the President of NARTO, Alhaji Yusuf Othman, said there was no better time to embrace the use of gas than now.
He pledged the willingness of his organisation to collaborate with GACN to key in and deepen the use of gas in the country.
“The world is evolving around the use of gas and we should not be left out. So we will convey to our members to look into what you are doing and key in,” he added.