The Benue state government says it is committed to meeting the energy needs of all residents.

Commissioner for transport, renewable energy, and power, Omale Omale, told journalists on Monday in Makurdi that the ministry already had the energy data of the state.

Mr Omale said that the new electricity act gave states the opportunity to join the energy market, generate, distribute, and regulate electricity within their states.

The commissioner said that the state was currently working to have its energy and power policy, and it was at the advanced stage.

On the Benue state electricity law, he said that the draft was at the ministry of justice for vetting for noward presentation to the state executive council, after which it would be sent to the State House Assembly as an executive bill.

“This will address the energy needs in unserved and underserved communities in the state.

“There are some communities that don’t have electricity infrastructure networks, which represent the unsaved group, while there are others with the infrastructure but don’t get regular electricity.

“As a ministry, we know the energy needs of all Benue people, and we are working on it,” he said.

Mr Omale said that the state had also keyed into the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) concept but, unfortunately, did not have the supportive infrastructure for it to thrive at the moment.

“Benue has keyed into the CNG concept. It is deployed in some states for test running, but unfortunately Benue is not among the pilot states.

“However, we don’t have the supportive infrastructural resources to deal with the CNG initiative at the moment.

“So the conversion of cars to CNG models is at a very low ebb, but we have the assurance of the Presidential Committee on CNG that they would support the state to strengthen her infrastructure so that we can begin to enjoy CNG.

“CNG is friendly, cost-effective, and ultimately it will tell on the reduction of prices of transportation in the state when we start to use it.

“For now, with the ongoing inflation there will be those consequential adjustments, Benue Links would continue to be the stabiliser that it was set out to be.

“For the reduction of prices now, it will take them out of business, and if they are out of business, the unsuspected citizens will be taking undue advantage of,” he said.

Mr Omale said that plans were on the way to organise a Benue state gas expansion stakeholders meeting to showcase the abandoned gas business opportunities in the state for possible investments.

He said that the state government was already discussing with one of the top leading companies in the gas industry, Greenville Liquified Natural Gas (LNG), for possible investment in the state, and the discussion was at an advanced stage.

According to the commissioner, the state was also looking for the possibility of introducing electronic vehicles, but at the moment there are no supporting infrastructures on the ground for it.

“As a government, we have received proposals from key leads in the electronic vehicles business, and we want to see how we can explore it. Discussions are at an advanced stage. We are thinking of starting it for the urban cities first,” he said. 

(NAN)