Drivers Sleep At Filling Stations For N380 CNG, But Passengers Still Pay N1405 Petrol Fares: The Untold Pains In CNG Transition
OpenLife News reports that motorists who embraced compressed natural gas to escape high petrol prices are now sleeping at filling stations to buy CNG at N380 per SCM, yet commuters still pay fares proportionate to N1405 petrol price.
When Debo Adeoti borrowed N1m to convert his commercial bus to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), he believed cheaper fuel would cut costs and reduce fares for commuters.
Instead, his expectation has shrivelled up like raisins in the sun. He now sleeps at filling stations to buy gas that sells for N380, while his passengers still pay fares calculated with N1405 petrol price.
“They said we should convert to gas; we have converted, and now to get the gas is a problem,” Adeoti lamented. The driver said he sometimes travels to a CNG station in Magboro, Ogun State, where he waits through the night.
According to information, CNG is roughly 70 per cent to 75 per cent cheaper than petrol in Nigeria.
At refuelling stations, CNG currently sells for about N380 per Standard Cubic Metre for passenger cars and light commercial buses and N450/SCM for heavy trucks.
In comparison, petrol ranges from N1,330 to N1,405 per litre, with NNPC stations in Lagos selling at N1,369/L and Abuja at N1,405/L.
The Federal Government created the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (Pi-CNG) after President Bola Tinubu announced petrol subsidy removal in May 2023.
Despite the N1025 difference per litre equivalent, transport fares from Ojota to Ikeja remain N1000, Berger to Mowe still N1500, and Ibadan to Lagos still N4000 to N5000 per seat.
Findings show commercial drivers deliberately tie fares to petrol price to recover high conversion costs and lost man-hours in queues.
An interstate transporter, Kayode Ojo, disclosed that a trip from Ibadan to Lagos fell from about N30,000 in petrol to approximately N7,000 in CNG, yet passengers still pay the old N5000 fare.
Nigeria’s CNG Journey Has Commenced, Irreversible—Kyari,
Idowu Olaide said his daily fuel expenditure fell from N50,000 on petrol to between N10,000 and N20,000 on CNG, but he cannot reduce fares because he loses 3-4 hours daily queuing for gas.
For commercial drivers, time is money. Every hour spent in CNG queue is lost income. So they transfer the cost of waiting time to commuters.
Despite spending N1m on conversion, motorists in Lagos, Ogun and Oyo now battle long queues and travel several kilometres to find refuelling stations.
Many drivers lamented that they lose hours of business while waiting to buy the cheaper alternative to petrol.
One driver, Wasiu Akande, spent more than four hours in a queue at an Ibile Oil and Gas Corporation station in Ikota, Lagos, on a hot Saturday. When it was finally his turn, he was told CNG had run out.
“It was so painful. I swear to God, I nearly cried. The experience was so terrible,” Akande said.
At the IOGC station in Ojota, Abiodun Olateju said, “Getting this gas is too stressful. I have been here close to three hours. It is affecting my business. If I go one trip, I will have to go and look for gas again and wait another two, three hours.”
The problem is not restricted to Lagos and Ogun. In Ibadan, more than 30 private and commercial vehicles and 40 tricycles were seen in a long queue at NNPCL filling station, Agodi Gate, with the queue visible from afternoon until 7:15 pm.
For Lukman Rasheed, a surveyor who has used CNG for five months, finding a convenient station is itself a challenge. “I live in Egbeda. Sometimes I may go to Bovas at Airport, here (NNPCL-Gate), or another station at Toll Gate,” he said.
Bamgbopa said, “I live in Lagos, but the availability is not as good there as it is in Ibadan. If there are more CNG stations, it can be better.”
The cost of converting a vehicle to CNG depends on the type of conversion system and engine capacity, with prices reaching N1.39m.
A price list showed an open-loop system for four-cylinder engines costs N810,000 to N870,000, while a sequential system costs N870,000 to N880,000.
For six- or eight-cylinder engines, conversion costs N1.09m to N1.1m. For V6 engines, 75-litre single-cylinder costs N1.1m, double-cylinder costs N1.39m.
Seun Bamgbopa said he spent N950,000 and Michael Awosika paid N500,000 to convert his tricycle.
Awosika said he makes six trips along Apata-Mokola route with N2,700 worth of CNG, compared to N15,000 he spent on petrol daily.
Idowu Olaide: “Before, daily I could spend N50,000 on fuel, but currently, I don’t use more than N10,000 to N20,000 gas.”
But commuters are not feeling it. A commuter in Ojota, Mrs Funmi, said, “They told us CNG will reduce transport fare. From Ojota to Ikeja is still N1,000. Nothing has changed.”
Speaking to OpenLife, Iduwo Gabriel, who operates the Oshodi-Apapa route in Lagos, admitted that many drivers exploit passengers’ lack of awareness about CNG.
“Charging passengers fares proportionate to petrol price is a good way for us to make money. Passengers don’t know who is using CNG or petrol. Everyone is fixated on fuel cost of about N1450 per litre. So we cash in on that to make extra gains,” he said.
“I am a hired driver. I deliver to the bus owner every day. I have family to feed, cloth and children are in school. Besides, cost of maintaining motor is high and agberos collect huge levy from us every day at the park and in each bus stop. So we make money from the ignorance of passengers,” Gabriel added.
The transition to CNG policy was intended to reduce transportation costs and cushion petrol price impact, while encouraging use of Nigeria’s natural gas resources. But the reality is different.
Stakeholders say the number is grossly inadequate for Lagos alone with over 5 million vehicles.
The Assistant General Manager, NIPCO Group, Lawal Taofeek, said, “We serve 80 to 100 vehicles in a day. We have enough supply. I believe when there are more stations, the queue will reduce.”
NNPC Limited spokesperson Andy Odeh attributed queues to limited facilities. He disclosed NNPC Gas Marketing Limited operates one mother station at Ilasamaja, Lagos, and jointly operates another with NIPCO at Ibafo, Ogun State, while facilities are under construction at Lekki and Ososa.
Responding, Head of Brand and Communications at Pi-CNG, Onyekachi Eke, said, “We recognise the concerns being raised by motorists over long queues and waiting times at some CNG refuelling stations. We understand that for a commercial driver, time spent in a queue is also lost income.”
On conversion costs, Eke said the initial Conversion Incentive Programme that offered free conversions for commercial operators ran 15 months across 16 states and ended in July/August 2025.
“What ended was that particular phase; Federal Government’s support did not end,” he said. He said Pi-CNG 2.0 commenced in March 2026 with subsidised kits and financing through Moniepoint and CREDICORP.
Until more stations come on stream, drivers will continue to sleep at filling stations to buy CNG at N380, while passengers continue to pay fares proportionate to N1405 petrol – the real untold pains in CNG transition.
Q: How much is CNG vs petrol price in Nigeria?
A: CNG is N380 per SCM for cars and N450 for trucks, while petrol is N1330-N1405 per litre at NNPC stations.
Q: Why are transport fares still high despite CNG?
A: Drivers say they spent N1m on conversion and lose 3-4 hours queuing for CNG, so they keep fares tied to petrol price to recover costs.
Q: Where are CNG queues worst?
A: Queues are worst at IOGC Ojota, NIPCO Magboro, FuelBuddy Magboro, Petrocam Mowe, and NNPCL Agodi Gate Ibadan.
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