The current scarcity in liquefied petroleum gas commonly known as cooking gas may soon be an event of the past as West Africa Gas limited Group is set to commence operations with two vessels. The vessels MT African Gas and MT Sahara Gas will birth in Houston, United States before heading to the West African coast . Expected time of arrival for the vessels is March 2017.
West Africa gas is a joint venture between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and Sahara Energy’s oil and gas trading arm Ocean Bed Trading Ltd (BVI).
The rice of filling a 12.5 kg cylinder of cooking gas commonly used by households went up from ₦3000 naira in December 2016 to ₦ 5000 naira as at January 2017. Industry operators have blamed the scarcity on the lack of vessels to transport the product into the country, as well as current foreign exchange challenges. Enhanced use of LPG will reduce the rate of deforestation and slow the effects of climate change in the country.
Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Alhaji Makanti Baru in a statement expressed the Corporation’s determination to ensure uninterrupted supply of the cooking gas. Forex and supply challenges have also lead to a scarcity and huge in the price of kerosene. This has led to many households reverting to fire wood and charcoal for cooking.
