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Cleaner, cheaper, quieter – going green with CNG CNG Fuels explains how Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) can be used to save both money and the enviornment at the same time, and why it should be the UK’s no 1 choice of fuel Natural Gas Vehicles (NGVs) use methane delivered in multiple forms as an energy source. Natural gas can be derived from fossil sources or as biomethane from renewable sources, distributed either in a compressed (CNG) or liquefied (LNG) state. The technology is far from new; there are currently around 23,000 natural gas refuelling stations worldwide, the vast majority of which are CNG stations. A recent Navigant Research report forecasts this number to grow to 39,000 by 2025. There are more than 22 million natural gas vehicles on the road, with 2.5 million added in 2014. In the EU alone, there are 3,000 CNG stations
and three million natural gas vehicles, although penetration rates in HGV and bus segments, are still only 0.5-1 per cent. The UK currently hosts about 650 natural gas HGVs and 50 CNG buses. Element Energy forecasts this number to rise rapidly to 10,000 by 2020, and 60,000 by 2030. As infrastructure and vehicles become available, the economic benefits aided by supportive domestic and EU legislation, become more accessible to fleet operators. Several large UK fleets are currently undertaking gas vehicle trials and transport managers and drivers are broadly enthusiastic about the experience and benefits which they have now seen first hand.
Many large fleet operators in the UK, most notably the food and goods retailers, are onboard and planning their role-outs. Natural gas adopters include John Lewis, Waitrose, Argos, Tesco, ASDA, DHL, Royal Mail and many others.These fleets have been running dual-fuel conversions to date, with combined gas and diesel engines, however both Waitrose and Argos, have now taken the step forward to 100 per cent gas vehicles, paving the way for others to do the same. A growing number of UK councils are evaluating their bus and refuse operations and contracts, and have plans for gas refuelling infrastructure in the coming year, including Bristol, Birmingham and Leeds. The benefits Natural gas is used in transport because it is cheaper, cleaner and quieter than running a diesel engine. Running CNG/LNG means 20 per cent lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions than current Euro 6 diesel engines, and equivalent NOx and particulate emissions. Natural Gas vehicles are up to 90 per cent quieter than their diesel counterparts, making them ideal for urban uses, such as buses and refuse vehicles. Natural gas is also significantly less costly on an energy equivalent basis, a factor which is magnified by monetary incentives to promote the use and provision of cleaner alternative fuels. The refuelling experience is widely misunderstood as being a number of hours due to the overnight ‘slow-filling’ used in some countries for large fleets. In the UK, a CNG station will fill a tank from empty to full in around three-to-four minutes, is not more complex than a diesel filling, and is equally as safe, without the requirement for protective clothing. The LNG experience is more complex, as dispenser operators, often drivers, must wear protective clothing when refuelling due to the cryogenic nature of the gas dispensed. The economics of CNG CNG for transport is priced in pence per kilo, and when drawn from the gas grid infrastructure costs around 65-70p/kg, or 48-52p/litre equivalent of diesel. Fuel duty on natural gas is fixed until 2024 at 24.7 p/kg or about 18.5p/litre, which when compared with diesel duty at 57.5p/litre, makes the economics of gas transport highly attractive. The cost of natural gas varies between stations on account of its source, and for CNG much of this variation is due to the compression required from the grid. Compressing gas into CNG from a high
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