Mr Buhari directs the Minister of State Petroleum Resources to commence the handover of mass transit buses to Organized Labour.
President Muhammadu Buhari Tuesday in Abuja appreciated Nigerians and Organized Labour for restraint, understanding and patience as the country tackles myriad economic challenges, assuring that the Federal Government is working hard to ameliorate the situation.
Speaking at a virtually held event at the State House to unveil National Gas Expansion Programme and National Autogas Roll-out Initiative, President Buhari said:
"Let me now express my deep appreciation to Nigerians for their patience, and Organized Labour for its maturity and patriotism as we collectively navigate these global economic and other challenges."
Mr Buhari urged Nigerians to embrace the use of gas as an alternative to fuel, noting that:
"It is no longer news that the vast Natural Gas resources, which Nigeria is endowed with, have hitherto been used sub-optimally as a result of a dearth of gas processing facilities and infrastructural connectivity for effective and optimal domestic utilization.
"As I mentioned above, with a proven reserve of about 203 Trillion Cubic Feet (TCF) and the additional upside of 600 TCF ranking Nigeria as the 9th in the world currently, the need for domestic gas expansion and utilization is apparent."
President Buhari said the deregulation of the downstream sector had exposed many to price volatilities in the global market, urging attention to more affordable alternative for energy, especially with Nigeria's heavy reserve.
"Therefore, the roll-out of the National Gas Expansion Programme, Auto-gas initiative is coming at the right time, especially in light of global crude oil market fluctuations coupled with the full deregulation of the local PMS market.
