Nigeria has launched a national registry to track liquefied petroleum gas cylinders through a new programme aimed at removing unsafe equipment from circulation and linking cleaner household cooking to carbon credits. The Standards Organisation of Nigeria announced the National Cylinder Recirculation Programme on Friday at its Lagos headquarters, in partnership with the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, the National Council on Climate Change and other government and industry partners. The initiative addresses persistent risks in Nigeria's LPG supply chain, including the circulation of expired, damaged and uncertified cylinders, limited access to cylinder histories, and gaps in inspection and requalification records.
The programme's central component is a National Cylinder Registry powered by FuelTree's virtual Cylinder Recirculation Management System. The platform assigns unique identities and smart QR tags to cylinders to record movements and lifecycle events, including distribution, refills, exchanges, inspections and requalification. Participating stakeholders will be able to check cylinder status and monitor compliance requirements in real time. According to Femi Oye, FuelTree director and chief technology officer, the registry connects unique cylinder identity tags with real-time lifecycle tracking, enabling seamless monitoring of requalification cycles and inspection records as cylinders move through the supply chain.
Ifeanyi Okeke, director-general of SON, said the programme unifies statutory quality control with digital traceability. "Safe and reliable LPG use depends on more than access to gas," he explained. "It requires strict adherence to cylinder quality standards, responsible handling, and effective lifecycle tracking. Through the NCRP, we are unifying statutory quality control with digital traceability to protect Nigerian lives and property while building consumer trust in clean energy." Implementation will begin with stakeholder onboarding and integration with the digital registry, with rollout activities across Nigeria's six geopolitical zones.
Beyond cylinder safety, the programme is designed to accelerate Nigeria's shift toward cleaner household cooking by encouraging LPG as an alternative to traditional fuels such as firewood, charcoal and kerosene. The initiative will establish data needed to support carbon-credit generation from verified reductions in the use of these fuels, subject to approved methodologies, independent verification and applicable regulatory requirements. Revenue from such a mechanism could help improve access to cylinders and reduce refill costs for vulnerable households, depending on the programme's financing arrangements, SON said. The national unveiling is scheduled for 28-29 October in Abuja alongside the Nigeria Clean Cooking Forum 2026, with an international unveiling planned for COP31 in Antalya, Turkey, on 9-20 November.