NNPC to Roll Out 70 Smart Self-Service Stations Nationwide

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) says it plans to deploy between 50 and 70 smart, self-service filling stations across Nigeria within the next six months.

The initiative is part of the company’s plan to transform its conventional filling stations into modern energy and mobility hubs offering petrol, electric vehicle (EV) charging, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG) and other services.

NNPC’s Executive Vice President, Downstream, Mumuni Dagazau, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja during the commissioning of a technology-driven service station equipped with an EV charging facility along Bill Clinton Drive, Airport Road.

Dagazau described the facility as the first of several smart stations planned across the country, saying the new model would provide customers with multiple energy and mobility services at one location.

He said NNPC expected to roll out 50 to 70 similar stations within six months, adding that several others were already being planned in Abuja and Kano.

The new stations will allow customers to dispense petrol themselves, including at night, using digital payment systems. However, attendants will remain available to assist customers.

Dagazau dismissed concerns that self-service pumps could lead to job losses, arguing that the expanded services would create additional employment opportunities.

According to him, the new energy hubs would require workers to support automation, EV charging, technology integration and other services.

The Executive Director, Retail Operations and Mobility, NNPC Ltd, Shettima Baba-Kukawa, said the Abuja facility has a storage capacity of 180,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and 45,000 litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO).

The station has 16 PMS pumps, two AGO pumps and six EV charging points, installed in partnership with African Motor Works. It is powered entirely by solar energy through a system with a capacity of more than 200 kilowatts.

The facility will also include a quick-service restaurant, coffee shop, automated car wash, modern service bay and LPG dispensing facilities. CNG services and a vehicle conversion centre are also planned.

Baba-Kukawa said the station would operate 24 hours a day and customers would be able to purchase fuel through a mobile application and dispense the exact quantity they paid for.

He added that customers who were unable to use the application would still receive assistance from station staff.

NNPC also plans to modernise more of its existing stations as customer expectations and the downstream petroleum market continue to change.

NNPC Retail Managing Director, Huub Stokman, said the transformation had become necessary following developments in Nigeria’s downstream sector, including deregulation and the commencement of operations at the Dangote Refinery.

He said consumers were increasingly demanding quality products, competitive prices, faster services, digital payment options and alternative energy sources such as EV charging and CNG.

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Kemi Nanna Nandap, commended NNPC for combining conventional fuel retailing with modern technologies and cleaner-energy solutions.

The development comes amid major changes in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector, with increased domestic refining capacity, deregulation and alternative fuels reshaping the way energy products are sold and consumed.

NNPC said its smart-station programme would help position its retail network for the changing market by combining conventional fuel sales with cleaner energy, digital services and improved customer convenience.