Back to overview
Home Clean Fuel LNG Blue Corridors Officialy Launched (Belgium)

LNG Blue Corridors Officialy Launched (Belgium)

June 4, 2013

LNG Blue Corridors Officialy Launched

From May 27 to 28, Brussels hosted the first consortium meeting marking the launch of the LNG Blue Corridors, a European project financed by the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7). Organised by NGVA Europe, the kick-off event of the four-year project was attended by more than 70 participants present at the public session on 27th May, which was held at the European Comission Centre A. Broschette.

In his Keynote speech opening up the meeting Olivier Onidi, Director of DG Move, emphasised the particular importance the project will have for the European LNG infrastructure in the years to come. Among the speakers were also Salma Kalev, Member of The Committee of Regions (CoR) and Rapporteur on the Clean Power for Transport (CPT) package as well as Andrea Zanaglio, Assistant of MEP Carlo Fidanza, who confirmed the impact of the CPT package is currently evaluated and that the progress of LNG Blue Corridors will be followed closely. Moreover, the industry was represented through Charlotte Hubert, CEO and Chairman of GNVert, and Karl Pihl, Volvo EU Regulatory Affairs Director; both companies are partners of the initiative. The final remarks and closure of the session was made by Daniela Rosca, Head of unit at DG Move and being on charge of the CPT package. The morning session was moderated by NGVA Europe EU Affairs Manager & Head of Brussels Office, Matthias Maedge, and the LNG Blue Corridor project coordinator, Xavier Ribas from IDIADA, took over in the afternoon.

NGVA Europe is proud to finally develop the LNG Blue Corridor concept for Europe after several years of frutful discussions and cooperation with the European Commission, supported by an impressive industry commmittment of 27 NGVA Europe members in total as project partners. Within the project, NGVA Europe is leading the working package “Roadmap to LNG Blue Corridor” responsible for the evaluation of the final assessment and preparation of guidelines to foster the LNG market development. This WP will also define a number of main routes for Heavy Goods Vehclces (HGV) to successfully demonstrate and further develop the use LNG along the developed corridors. In parallel, NGVA Europe is also in charge of the project dissemination and exploitation, in order to accelerate the implementation of the research findings. Several workshops and events will be organised during the four year duration of the project .

The LNG Blue Corridors project’s aim is to establish LNG as a real alternative for medium & long distance transport – first as a complementary fuel and later as an adequate substitute for diesel. To accomplish its objective it has defined a roadmap of LNG refuelling points along four corridors covering the Atlantic area, the Mediterranean region and connecting Europe’s South with the North and its West and East accordingly. In order to implement a sustainable transport network for Europe, the project has set the goal to build approximately 14 new LNG or L-CNG stations, both permanent and mobile, on critical locations along the Blue Corridors whilst building up a fleet of approximately 100 Heavy Duty Vehicles powered by LNG.

The project is co-funded by the European Commission with the amount of 7.96 M€ (total investments amounting to 14.33 M€), involving 27 partners from 11 countries, all members of NGVA Europe. The full list reads as follows:

  • Applus IDIADA Group
  • Ballast Nedam IPM
  • Cloud Energy
  • Centro Ricerche Fiat
  • Drive Systems N.V
  • Energy Institute Hrvoje Pozar (EIHP)
  • Eni S.p.A.
  • ENOS LNG
  • erdgas mobil GmbH
  • FLUXYS
  • Galp Power
  • Gasrec Ltd
  • Gas Natural Fenosa
  • GNVert-GDF Suez
  • GoldEnergy
  • HAM CRIOGENICA
  • The Hardstaff Group
  • Iveco España S.L.
  • Linde Industrial Gases/BOC
  • Mendyra, S.L.
  • MONFORT LOGISTICA, S.L.
  • NGVA Europe
  • The Swedish Gas Association
  • VITO
  • Volvo AB / Renault Trucks SAS
  • Westport

LNG has huge potential for contribution to achieving Europe’s policy objectives such as the Commission’s targets for green house gas reduction, air quality targets, while at the same time reducing dependency on crude oil and guarantying supply security. Natural gas heavy duty vehicles already comply with Euro V emission standards and have enormous potential to reach future Euro VI emission standards without complex exhaust gas after treatment technologies, which cause increasing procurement and maintenance costs.

[mappress]
Source: NGVA Europe, June 04, 2013