The federal government has been urged to expedite the rollout of its Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative across northern Nigeria by engaging more competent and committed firms for implementation.
This call was made during a roundtable discussion organized by the Development and Safety Professional Association (DSPA) in Maiduguri, Borno State, on Saturday, where experts expressed concerns over the disappointing pace of CNG infrastructure development in the region.
In a communique issued after the meeting, DSPA's Regional Coordinator, Engineer Bukar Hashimu Goni, praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's CNG initiative as a "noble and commendable policy" designed to mitigate the effects of fuel subsidy removal but criticized its implementation in northern states.
"We have watched how other private firms, engaged by the federal government, are professionally handling the project in other parts of the country. The same cannot be said about Rolling Energy, which is saddled with the responsibility of ensuring the success of the CNG in northern Nigeria," Goni stated.
The association specifically highlighted the performance disparity between companies implementing the initiative in southern Nigeria and Rolling Energy, the firm responsible for the northern region. According to DSPA, Rolling Energy appears "least qualified and ill-prepared for such a massive project."
The group noted that in Maiduguri, the company has only established three incomplete sites with no clear completion timeline. More concerning, they reported no visible presence of CNG infrastructure development in major economic centers like Kano and Kaduna, while describing the facility in Kwara State as "a small site with insignificant input compared to the scale of demand."
DSPA's Technical Director, Architect Mansur Walid, made a direct appeal to President Tinubu, the National Security Adviser, and relevant security agencies to investigate Rolling Energy's operations, suggesting possible deliberate sabotage.
"We unequivocally appeal to the president, the NSA, and other security agencies to beam their searchlight on the activities of the company handling the north, whose majority management are Indians. We suspect foul play and deliberate sabotage in terms of the CNG initiative," Walid said.
He questioned why Rolling Energy has failed to effectively implement the CNG program in northern Nigeria while other firms are making significant progress in southern regions.
The DSPA has called on the federal government to review existing contracts and prioritize firms with proven capacity and local understanding to prevent regional disparities in implementing this national policy, which is crucial for economic relief following the removal of fuel subsidies.
