The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) this weekend inaugurated its first smart fuel station (self-service) in the country.
The state-owned oil firm said it plans to commission additional 70 such stations nationwide.
Its Downstream Executive Vice President, Mumuni Dagazao told reporters on the sideline of the commissioning of the fuel station at Bill Clinton Drive, Airport Road, Abuja.
“We are hoping to roll out a significant number, probably about 50 to 70 of this type of stations within the next six months,” he said.
He revealed that the commissioned station is the first of the many smart stations coming into the country.
The commissioning of the fuel station is in the bid to shift from the concept of filling stations to an energy hub.
Describing the station as encompassing of several services, the Executive Vice President said: “What the whole concept is, we are trying to turn from a filling station to an energy hub.”
The station that is operational 24/7, has both Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and Automotive Gas Oil vending pumps while its Compress Natural Gas and LNG are to come up later.
It also has provision for electric vehicles charging. The EV charging station is powered from a solar plant that is mounted on its roof.
Although Dagazaou could not readily comment on the pricing of the EV charging, The Nation however learnt that it is N400 per kilowatts.
It was also gathered that a fully charged battery at N16,000 could last 400 kilometers.
Dagazaou said it takes about 40 minutes to charge the EV.
He said in the next 10 months, the NNPCL fueling stations should be technologically driven like the commissioned smart station.
He said 10 year is to far a target to make all NNPCL fuel stations amart, noting that the company would rather target 10 months for the technological change.
He said: “If you are hoping good for me, then I was hoping you were going to say 10 months, but to challenge us, right?
“So you need to challenge us. So what we like is our customers challenging us, right? We want our people.”
In his opening remarks, the NNPC Retail, Managing Director, Mr. Hope Stockman said the company needs to meet consumers’ needs for quality and quantity at the right price they can trust.
According to him, the “customers want to see more services, added services, like a fast-food restaurant, a convenience shop, maybe a coffee shop, banking, they would like to have a lube or car wash. All these things you will see here.”
Present at the ceremony were the representatives of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Nigerian Immigration Service, Nigeria Navy and Africa Motor World.
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
