WIEN, Smart Gas Collaborate To Bridge Sustainability Gap With Cooking Gas
. To Distribute 100,000 Free Cylinders Yearly
. Seek Public, Private Sector Financiers
By Frederick Wright
As part of their commitment to bridge sustainability gas in the country, the Women In Energy Network (WIEN) and Smart Gas Limited have collaborated to expand the use of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), otherwise known as cooking gas, in the local communities across Nigeria.
The initiative plans to distribute 100,000 cylinders yearly, in a bid to offer more cost-effective and sustainable energy source for households compared to firewood, coal, and kerosene.
President of the Women in Energy Network (WIEN), Mrs Eyono Fatai-Williams, while speaking on the collaborative initiative in Lagos said the duo are determined to deepen the penetration of LPG in the country, with wide range distribution of gas cylinders fully filled with gas to the populace.
She said this partnership between WIEN and Smart Gas Limited perfectly aligns with the Federal Government’s broader fuel diversification agenda and its goals for economic growth, environmental sustainability, and public health improvement. “By deepening LPG penetration, we are supporting the country’s energy transition, creating jobs, improving lives, and protecting our environment. We are proud to contribute to a vision of a cleaner, healthier, and more prosperous Nigeria” she said.
According to her, “LPG is a cleaner fuel compared to firewood, coal, and kerosene, and its increased adoption plays a critical role in Nigeria’s efforts to reduce environmental degradation. Deforestation caused by firewood collection, soil erosion, and harmful emissions can be minimized as more households transition to LPG, aligning with Nigeria’s commitments to combating climate change and preserving our ecosystems”.
Chief Executive Officer, Smart Gas Limited, Dr Yinka Opeke, said the company aims to increase domestic LPG consumption and reduce reliance on kerosene and other polluting fuels, assuring that it produces high quality cylinders, which guarantees safety and durability.
She said, Smart Gas takes priority in wide scale adoption of cooking gas in line with the government’s policy of ensuring that no Nigerian is left behind in the transition to cleaner fuels, hence it has been distributing cylinder through several initiatives.
According to her, the company had earlier undertaken a ‘Waste for Gas’ initiative whereby gas cylinders were distributed to the masses in exchange of waste generated from leaning their environment.
She said the company is in partnership with WIEN to further increase adoption of cooking gas, as it plans to distributing 100,000 cylinders per year.
Opeke said the group hopes to attract more financiers for the project so that more people in the local communities could be reached.
“We have identified the gas niche in the grassroots and we are looking at how we can get them involved in gas adoption,” she said.
Calling for more financiers to aid the project, she said; “By supporting Smart Gas, you are supporting the grassroots adoption of cooking gas and you are transitioning families with one cylinder at a time and improving their livelihood. I hope that this partnership will help to attract financiers locally and internationally,”
She said Smart Gas has the track record of having done similar project at the federal, state and the local council level and private sector collaborations, adding the initiative would spread to areas whereby people are yet to receive their attention.
Opeke said the initiative is looking at touching all the 774 local councils in Nigeria