New Biomethane Station for Heavy Vehicles Opens in Southern Sweden

(Gasum/NGV Journal) Located in Kalmar, this is Gasum’s 10^th natural gas station in Sweden and provides heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs) with LNG and bio-LNG. The new facility is also an important part of Gasum’s plan to build a network of 50 stations for HDVs by the early 2020s in the Nordics. It is necessary to develop the natural gas infrastructure so that the transition to cleaner fuels will be smoother for long-haul transport. The growing network opens further opportunities to answer to the increased demand for low-emission road transport.

Heavy-duty transport currently accounts for up to 30% of Europe’s CO2 emissions from road transport. According to the new emission standards passed by the EU in 2019, greenhouse gas emissions from HDVs are to be reduced by 30% by 2030. The national target in Sweden is to reduce road transport emissions by 70% by 2030, as compared to 2010 levels.

“Building the natural gas station network for HDVs is an essential part of Gasum’s strategy. In the Nordics, most cargo transport takes place by road. Because of the long distances, we must keep focusing on creating further opportunities for logistics and transport companies to switch from fossil diesel to LNG and bio-LNG. We’re currently planning to build a network of 50 natural gas stations by the beginning of 2020s,” said Mikael Antonsson, Director of Traffic at Gasum in Sweden.

Kalmar is in the south part of Sweden where biogas production is widely established. In Kristianstad, also in the south, Gasum is currently building a biogas plant at Stora Enso’s Nymölla pulp and paper mill, which will turn the mill’s wastewater into bio-LNG. The plant is expected to start operating during the second half of 2020, and bio-LNG will be available at Gasum’s stations. Providing both biogas and LNG, the Kalmar station serves as an important stop for the long-haul transport segment as well as local transport companies.

Widens Åkeri, a local transport company based in Kalmar, was able to order two natural gas trucks because of the new stations. “For us, the new filling station in Kalmar was a prerequisite for ordering natural gas vehicles. Making our business more sustainable is one of our most important goals and alternative fuels are needed to replace fossil diesel. We’re really looking forward to using biogas,” commented Pierre Widén, CEO at Widens Åkeri. lngbio-LNG READ MORE