By CHARLES KUMOLU

THE recent decision by the Federal Government to stop the importation of  Tokunbo vehicles is generating diverse reactions across the country, ostensibly because most Nigerians depend solely on imported fairly used cars, popularly called Tokunbo or ‘Belgium’ depending on which part of the country you are coming from.

The proposed ban which came through the National Automotive Policy, NAP, is aimed at reducing the huge amount expended annually on importation of cars. Reports claim that Nigeria spent about a staggering $4.2 billion (about N550billion) on the importation of cars in 2010, and $3.4 billion  in 2012. The move is expected to make ownership of cars easier and encourage local manufacturers. The decision is generating anxiety among those who depend on such fairly used vehicles for their transportation needs.

It was perhaps against this backdrop that Nigerian engineers, who were at the recent Shell Eco-Marathon in Rotterdam, Netherlands unveiled plans to design, build and test ultra-energy-efficient and environment-friendly vehicles by 2014. This piece of information may be a happy news for a people who are already jittery over the automotive policy, given the harsh economic realities in the country.

The project, Vanguard Features, VF, learnt, is being supported by Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, on behalf of Shell Companies in Nigeria. The  team of engineers, who are working on the project, comprises professors and students drawn from the University of Lagos ,UNILAG; University of Benin ,UNIBEN and Ahmadu Bello University ABU, Zaria.

The team from UNIBEN includes Prof. Akaehomen Ibhadode and his students – Adetunji  Taj-Liad and Adekola Adeyemi; while the ABU team is made up of Mohammed Dauda of the Mechanical Engineering Department and his students, Bartholomew Njoku and Yusuf Sadiq. Similarly, the UNILAG team is led by Prof. Ike Mowete of the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and two of his best students, Messrs Obinna  Agba and Abraham Imohiosen.

A member of the team, who spoke to VF, said the near 100 per cent environment-friendly car, would be available before the first Africa/Middle East version of the Shell Eco Marathon scheduled for Doha, Qatar in November 2014. Ibhadode who is a professor of Manufacturing Engineering at UNIBEN gave reasons why a Nigerian car has become inevitable.

“We are not looking at just competing, but far beyond that we are looking at coming out with a made in Nigeria car, which will form the basis of Nigerian made car. That is our focus. We are going there to participate, make our mark and beyond that we are hoping that this will be the pioneer effort in getting this dream called the Nigerian car. Judging from the work we have done previously and the one we are doing now concerning the World Bank sponsored project on the making of engine parts, developing local skills in making of engine parts, we are hoping that at the end of this process we will be able to put together almost a 100 per cent made-in-Nigeria car.”

Another person who is also confident that the project would be realistic, is Dr. Mohammed Dauda. Dauda, a mechanical engineer at ABU. He said, “Indeed we can link up the Shell Eco-Marathon to the quest for competitive made-in- Nigeria car. We went to Rotterdam as observers at the 2013 Shell Eco-Marathon in Europe but we are going to participate in Shell Eco-Marathon in the Middle East and Africa holding next year in Doha. Remember this event is tailored at producing a highly energy efficient car both prototype and sub-urban concept.

Energy efficient cars

So all the parts that will be used in making this highly energy efficient car will be fed into our Nigeria car project. So in essence, participating in Eco-Marathon will help us make a highly energy efficient and sophisticated car.

“Nigeria will be able to make a highly energy efficient car. Remember sometimes because of the economics, it will make it cheap when it comes to Nigeria. We might adapt some technologies rather than say we will simply make all of it because it may increase the cost. But what I am assuring you is that we will be able to make cars in Nigeria. But when you say 90 per cent, it means all the 90 per cent of the materials and inputs will be sourced locally. That I am not sure because we do not have the empirical evidence to show you as it is now.”

While tracing the story of the project, Dauda said, “The optimism for a 100 per cent made-in-Nigeria car started as part of the Centre for Automotive Design and Development, CADD. It started as a project called Three wheel project, which began under one of the military regimes. The three-wheel project was tasked with looking at the possibility or feasibility of making a Nigerian car.

So when it completed its work, the military administration went ahead to set up CADD and domiciled it in ABU. It was headed by Prof. Clement Folayan who was then Head of Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Dean of Engineering ABU, Zaria.  The CADD has been closed and its functions merged with the National Automotive Council.”

How the car will be built: Following this level of confidence on the possibility of the project, many Nigerians believe that the absence of local technological requirements may constitute a challenge. But Prof Mowete of  Electrical and Electronics Engineering, UNILAG dismissed such fears. According to him, local capacities are being built.

“A lot goes into building a made in Nigeria car. If you look at it from various dimensions, you will discover that there are quite a few opportunities that are open to us.

Battery management

Take the electrical system for example: How do you design a battery management system that will significantly reduce the way the car consumes fuel or energy? How do you design a breaking system that contributes to the entire vehicles fuel efficiency, which has the aesthetics the wiper, the lighting systems, dash-boards?

“There are quite a few opportunities open to our students. More importantly let them now go from drawing board to hardware. We will design and try to implement in hardware and see that in doing so that each time we are conscious of the larger objective of building a fuel efficient car. Fortunately for now, we are not looking at the engine. In my own team, for example, we are focusing on the electric vehicle. And there are quite a few opportunities for that. I can see now on paper that when we get going, we begin to see many things that will be open.

“Many researchers on campus have shown interest in various forms. Some on Information Technology, IT; what will they contribute with their IT skills? We have interviewed them. Some we have finished interviewing and we have made them part of the team based on the interview performance. So it will be unfolding gradually. Certainly it will contribute to the eventual made-in-Nigeria car because now we are localising talents, we are building local capacities. I am sure at some point, we will have the critical mass necessary for us to begin to move from there.”

Global automobile map

Meanwhile, the External Communications Manager, African Cluster, Shell Nigeria, Mr. Phillip Mshelbila, has expressed confidence that the project would launch Nigeria into the global automobile map. He said, “It is an opportunity to put Nigeria on the map. You will concentrate on your design to build, test and actually race this car next year. I call it Eco Marathon challenge.

So we have to conquer this challenge and win. We are looking forward to the team Nigeria coming back with the prize; to build a car that can take you the farthest distance with the least fuel. It also gives us the opportunity with a Nigerian automobile. See how far India and Brazil have achieved. We see this as an opportunity as well to rekindle that flame in Nigeria to develop a Nigerian car despite these challenges. Our support is to enable this process to go forward and bring this into the consciousness of Nigerians.”