NCDMB, Coppercrux train youths on CNG to tackle unemployment and drive cleaner energy
With over 200 trillion cubic feet of gas untapped, Nigeria turns to CNG skills training to boost jobs, cut fuel costs, and position itself in the global energy transition.
Nigeria’s biggest resource is not oil, it is people, millions of young men and women eager for work but trapped in an economy that has not kept up with their numbers. At the same time, the country is sitting on more than 200 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, much of it untapped.
The paradox has always been there: abundant wealth underground, but unemployment and poverty above it. Now, a new training programme by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and Coppercrux Limited is attempting to bridge that gap by equipping young Nigerians with skills in compressed natural gas (CNG) technologies. This sector is becoming central to the future of energy.
The training, launched in Port Harcourt, is more than just another workshop; it is a strategic move to align Nigeria with global energy shifts while addressing domestic economic pressures. For decades, the country’s over-reliance on petrol and diesel drained government coffers through subsidies and exposed ordinary Nigerians to wild price fluctuations.
Also read: Mining sector on upward trajectory on strength of local content
The pivot to natural gas, particularly CNG, has become a cornerstone of government policy as it pushes for cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable energy alternatives. With the Federal Government declaring the “Decade of Gas”, this initiative sits at the heart of a much larger national transformation.
Economists often say that no economy can grow beyond the skills of its people. Nigeria’s unemployment rate, especially among young people, remains a ticking time bomb. Initiatives like the NCDMB-Coppercrux programme provide a way out, giving participants skills that are not only marketable at home but also globally relevant.
Across the world, demand for workers in renewable and gas technologies is rising as countries commit to lower-carbon futures. For Nigeria, this means a double win: reducing dependence on imported fuel and creating a skilled workforce that can compete internationally.
CNG is increasingly seen as a bridge fuel in the global energy transition. It produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions than petrol or diesel, and it is cheaper for households and businesses. Countries such as India have built entire industries around CNG-powered vehicles, saving billions while cutting urban pollution.
Nigeria, blessed with abundant natural gas reserves, has every reason to follow suit. Yet the missing link has always been infrastructure and people with the right expertise. Without technicians, engineers, and operators who understand the systems, no amount of gas reserves can translate into meaningful growth. This is the gap NCDMB and Coppercrux are aiming to close.
The economic implications are huge. By training and empowering young people to take charge of CNG adoption, Nigeria can cut transport costs, reduce environmental damage, and grow new industries around gas conversion, vehicle retrofitting, and maintenance. The knock-on effects, jobs, rural income, and stronger small businesses could transform communities that today are locked out of opportunity. Beyond the direct skills transfer, the programme signals a broader shift: Nigeria can no longer afford to ship out raw resources while importing finished products. Building capacity at home is the only path to sustainable growth.
Energy analysts have long warned that without deliberate investment in human capital, Nigeria risks being left behind in the global race toward cleaner energy. Oil may have built the country’s economy, but it is natural gas, and the people trained to harness it, that will determine the future.
By turning young Nigerians into experts in CNG, NCDMB, and Coppercrux are not just filling classrooms; they are planting the seeds of an industry that could power both economic resilience and environmental responsibility.
One thing remains clear: the future of Nigeria’s energy is not just about pipelines and reserves; it is about people. A skilled population is the true engine of economic progress, and training in CNG technologies offers a glimpse of how Nigeria can marry its natural endowment with its human potential.
If sustained and scaled, this could be the start of a new story, one where Nigerian youth drive the transition to cleaner energy while securing their own livelihoods in the process.
