News Investigators/ Alfa Designs Nigeria Limited, a leading oil and gas company, says it has secured approval to begin conversion of diesel-powered engines to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in the country.
The company said the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) had done the Proof of Concept (POC) on its conversion kits and granted a five-year licence to deploy the kits.
Quadri Fatai, Group Managing Director, Alfa Designs Nigeria Limited, spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja.
Mr Fatai said that the conversion would enable all diesel-powered, trucks, vehicles, engines, generators and draggers to be converted to a dual fuel-powered system.
According to the chief executive officer, the dual fuel powered system will be used interchangeably, because the conversion is not 100 per cent CNG.
Mr Fatai disclosed that the conversion kits had a device, called Telematrix that would be installed alongside the components of the conversion kits, which could assist in automatic tracking of converted vehicles or engines.
“So, basically we already have the kits after following up all the necessary protocols to get the kits approved by the regulator.
“And then the kits also have a very fantastic device called Telematrix to be installed alongside the kits.
“The Telematrix actually enables one to assess the condition of the engine, equipment or vehicle and also to be able to track their location via online.’’
He said the device could help an engine user in terms of maintenance, and could also help the Federal Government in tracking tankers while supplying and distributing petroleum products.
“Instead of having too many securities on the way, trying to track the tankers that are meant to supply products, installing kits with the Telematrix will guarantee security and bring down high logistics cost.
“After conversion, the Telematrix reveals the real-time amount of diesel of which an engine is consuming and the amount of gas it is actually consuming.
“And if anyone tampers with the device, it will also reflect that it has been tampered with.’’
Mr Fatai said the dual conversion ratio in terms of 30 per cent diesel and 70 per cent CNG would definitely bring down the cost of logistics.
“The advantage is that it will bring down the volume of the diesel and assists the engine to have a complete combustion, because while burning only diesel, there is possibility that the engine’s condition might not have a complete combustion.
“Most of the diesel engines produce carbon soot, a thick smoke, which is a sign that the engines are having incomplete combustion, causing a whole lot of pollution.’’
He said that the company was also partnering with one of the biggest CNG-powered generator manufacturing company in China to deploy generators for its facilities.
Speaking on the cost of the conversion, he said the price would only be ascertained after evaluating the vehicle or engine because factors such as the size and condition of the engines would be put into consideration.
“The conversion price will be based on the capacity and specification of the engine that is being converted.
“But the savings you are going to make by installing the kits on your system and operating it at long duration will have a repay back in less than three months because CNG is costs effective,’’ he said.
NAN