To address the nation's skyrocketing prices of the product, Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo, minister of state for petroleum resources (gas), has announced that he will invite regulatory bodies and producers of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), often known as cooking gas.

This occurred concurrently with the federal government's distribution of 250 fully-filled LPG cylinders to underprivileged homes in Lagos State through the Decade of Gas Secretariat and a few partners.

According to a ThisDay report, the operation was in keeping with the government's yearly goal of having 250,000 households in each of Nigeria's 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) switch to clean cooking gas by 2030.

Cooking gas price increased

The cost of LPG per kilogramme has increased dramatically recently; last month, a 12.5-kg cylinder cost roughly N13,500. Today, the same cylinder can be filled for as much as N16,200.

Speaking to reporters yesterday in Lagos during the launch of the LPG Grassroots Penetration and Cylinder Distribution Programme for the South-West Zone, Ekpo acknowledged that cooking gas prices had increased and said he would invite the relevant parties to address the issue.

The operation was in keeping with the government's yearly goal of having 250,000 households in each of Nigeria's 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) switch to clean cooking gas by 2030.

He said: “In the energy security we are talking about, we are talking about the affordability, availability. So we are going to do that. Whatsoever is the reason behind the hike in price, we will make sure we bring it down.”

The minister added earlier in his keynote speech that the day's events demonstrated the administration's unshakable commitment to increasing domestic gas usage.

Ekpo observed that by beginning with the distribution of up to 250 gas cylinders, the administration was making concrete progress toward accomplishing their larger objective.

He added that the initiative was a key component of the Decade of Gas Initiative, which envisions converting 250,000 homes to clean cooking gas within the next decade.

The minister also said the government was committed to realising this vision through strategic partnerships with both the public and private sectors.

Ekpo added, “I would like to solicit corporate, private, and public sponsorship to advance this program beyond our goal of one million households. Our goal is to convert over one million homes across 774 local government areas in Nigeria to utilise LPG for cooking.”