The Nordic gas filling stations network is expanding as Finland-headed gas major Gasum Oy has officially opened its ninth, and most northerly gas filling station thus far, in Sweden. Serving both heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs) and passenger cars with liquefied and compressed gas respectively, the new station is the first one in Umeå in northern Sweden and part of Gasum’s plan to build a network of 50 gas filling stations for HDVs by the early 2020s in the Nordics.
The new gas filling station in Umeå is in an area with heavy traffic where fuel consumption is high and the need for clean fuel solutions is rising rapidly. The new station, which was officially opened on February 5, 2020, serves both heavy-duty vehicles (HDV)s and gas-powered passenger cars, so-called natural gas vehicles (NGVs).
HDVs can fill up on liquefied biogas (LBG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG), while compressed natural gas (CNG) and compressed biogas (CBG) is suitable for passenger cars, delivery vehicles, waste management vehicles, and buses.
As the gas station network expands, gas becomes available to more actors in the transport sector, which in turn increases the demand for gas. At the end of last year, we opened a new gas station in Östersund, which together with the Umeå station enables gas-fueled vehicles to be used across Sweden, said Mikael Antonsson, Director of Traffic at Gasum Sweden.
LNG and LBG go hand in hand
According to Gasum, the increasing amount of new stations is a key factor in reducing emissions, particularly in the long-haul road transport segment. Heavy-duty transport currently accounts for up to 30 percent of Europe’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from road transport.
The new emission standards passed by the EU in 2019 stipulates that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from HDVs are to be reduced by 30 percent by 2030. The national target in Sweden is to reduce road transport emissions by 70 percent by 2030, compared to 2010 levels.
Using cleaner fuel solutions is an important factor in Sandahls’ environmental strategy work. The new gas filling stations are vital since they enable us to reduce our emissions and meet our customers’ needs of having low-emission logistics chains. I’m glad that we’re able to use LBG-fueled trucks in Umeå, explained Johan Ebefors, CEO at Sandahls Goods and Parcel, part of the Swedish logistics company Sandahls Group.
Gasum maintains that LNG offers a competitive fuel solution for reducing emissions immediately as its lifecycle CO2 emissions are more than 20 percent lower than those of fossil diesel. The Umeå station also provides LBG, which is produced according to the principles of circular economy from biowaste.
Being the first gas filling station in the region, it creates a base for further biogas investments in the area as well as offering a cleaner fuel solution for local companies and the municipality. With LBG, CO2 emissions can be reduced by up to 85 percent compared to fossil diesel. LBG can be used in the same infrastructure as LNG, making the shift to LBG easy and cost-efficient.
Biogas is a high-performance renewable fuel. New stations accelerate the usage of biogas-fueled vehicles, which is why the new station is not only important for the Umeå region but for Sweden as well, said Anna Säfvestad Albinsson, Project Leader at BioFuel Region AB, Umeå.
