The Nordic gas filling station network continues to expand as Finland-headed gas and energy major Gasum Oy opens its fifth station in Sweden. The new station in the city of Karlstad offers liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquefied biogas (LBG) for heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs). The new station responds to increasing market demand for low-emission fuels. Gasum plans to grow the Nordic gas filling station network to 50 stations by the early 2020s.
The increasing demand for cost-effective, low-emission fuel options for heavy-duty transport is answered with an expanding network of gas filling stations. The growing demand has been partly driven by the emission reduction standards of the European Union (EU).
The new regulation presented by the EU in early 2019 states that greenhouse gas emissions from HDVs need to be reduced by 30 percent by 2030. According to Gasum, gas plays a significant role especially in HDV segment in achieving future emission reduction targets in the EU.
The expanding filling station network supports logistics companies operating in Sweden that want to reduce their carbon footprint. For logistics companies, LNG and LBG are a necessity in the transition to a carbon-neutral future. At the same time, they enable significant savings in fuel costs. Gasums expanding network in Sweden now covers a distance of around 1 000 km between our upcoming station in Kalmar in the south, and the Östersund station in the north, said Mikael Antonsson, Director Traffic Sweden, Gasum.
One of the EU targets is to promote alternative clean fuels. Alternative fuels such as LNG and LBG both help to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions including carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), and particulate matter (PM) emissions, which have a positive impact on local air quality compared to diesel.
The Swedish government has recognized the role of gas in HDV segment with various incentives promoting infrastructure build-up and increasing the number of gas vehicles.
Mejeritransport on the road to a cleaner tomorrow
Developing the infrastructure and gas filling station network across the Nordics to a total of 50 stations by the early 2020s is a joint effort of Gasum and its partners. The new gas filling stations are targeted to the long-haul transport segment where energy consumption is also the highest.
All of the new stations will be located in high-traffic areas, enabling a significant increase in the use of LNG and LBG in heavy-duty transport.
The Karlstad station is the first gas filling station in the County of Värmland and is part of Gasum’s plan to guarantee HDVs a reliable filling station network spread across Sweden. The new station is also an answer to a growing local need for LBG and LNG, especially among Värmland’s logistics companies.
For example, Mejeritransport AB, a logistics company based in Värmland, has a fleet of about 35 trucks and a keen interest towards alternative fuels. Mejeritransport is one of Arla Food’s logistics contractors in Sweden.
Arla is aiming to be fossil-free in the near future. We are proud to operate Arla’s first LBG truck in Sweden and excited to be leading the progress towards more environmentally friendly logistics, said Patrik Andersson, Head of Logistics, Mejeritransport AB.
