Still decreasing In 2014, despite the economic slowdown, the total consumption of fuel in Brazil remained high, follo-
7.1 SALES OF NATURAL GAS BY THE SEGMENT (In 1000 m3/ day)
wing the expansion of the fleet, according to data from ANP (the Brazilian Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas
2013
2014
and Biofuels). However, the exception was with sales
Automotive
5.125
4.961
of compressed natural gas (CNG), which decreased by
Industrial
28.144
28.467
3,2%, from 5,12 million cubic meters/day in 2013 to 4,96
Residential
1.004
965
million cubic meters/day in 2014.
Commercial
747
769
Electricity Generation
26.256
33.410
tion in the year, it should be noted that there was a
Cogeneration
2.466
2.570
slight increase of 6% in CNG sales in December com-
Others
3.380
6.975
pared to November 2014, reflecting the rise of gasoli-
Total
67.122
78.117
ne prices in refineries, announced in November by Pe-
Source: Abegás
Even though there was reduction in the consump-
trobras, and also reflecting the difference in the price
almost the entire year, and that resulted in higher con-
of hydrous ethanol.
In fact, the total consumption of natural gas in the country grew by 16,3% in 2014 compared to the previous year, but the electricity generation segment was the one that was largely responsible for the increase in
sumption of natural gas. So while the volume of gas was 4,961 million cubic meters/day for automotive use and 965 000 m³ / day for residential use in 2014, electricity
demand, with a 27% growth compared to 2013. With
generation accounted for 33,410 million cubic meters/
the water crisis, the thermal power plants remained on
day, according to Abegás.
Strong reduction The conversions of vehicle engines into CNG-po-
-generation kits, for example, led to the early replace-
wered engines decreased by 20%, from 29.896 units in
ment of spark plugs and cables, thus causing an increa-
2013 to 23.849 units in 2014. This percentage is two ti-
se in maintenance costs. The newer kits, of the so-called
mes the quantity of the previous period, if we compare 2013 to 2012, when there was a decline of 10%. Currently, the Brazilian gas-powe-
fifth generation, with their sensors 7.2 CONVERSIONS In units
and electronic control unit, offer a more efficient operation, with the
29.896
same maintenance intervals as those
red fleet is estimated at about 1,8 million
of a vehicle powered by ethanol or 23.849
vehicles, almost half (48% of the total) of which is in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
gasoline. Furthermore, the product has the advantage of releasing less
The need to install conversion kits
waste during the combustion, which
in vehicles is one of the reasons why the-
can influence the useful life of the en-
re are few consumers using this type of
gine and the length of time between
gas. In addition to the investment, the
servicing.
kits take up space in the vehicle’s trunk
There is already a sixth gene-
and, in some cases, they may affect the
ration system designed for vehicles
operation of other parts. The old third-
2013
2014
Source: IBP
Annual Fuel Retail Report 2015 53