CNG Cars: Italy Leads, Germany Expanding Fast
New registrations of natural gas passenger cars across Europe shot up during January to May 2018, said German gas industry lobby Zukunft Erdgas (Gas Future) August 1.
They were up by 83% year on year across Europe, it said citing data from the European Alternative Fuels Observatory (EAFO) showing Italy still the largest market but Germany as the fastest-growing.
In the first five months of this year, nearly 36,000 new cars fuelled by gas were registered, up almost 16,000 on the same period of the previous year. With 5,446 vehicles, Germany recorded more than 15% of Europe’s new registrations, according to EAFO, reaching a new high. Italy however remains by far Europe’s largest market, with around 1mn vehicles running on compressed natural gas (CNG).
EAFO data also show increased popularity of CNG engines in Belgium, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic, said Zukunft Erdgas. CEO Timm Kehler said he was pleased “because natural gas can make a decisive contribution to more climate protection in traffic.”
The growth in German registrations was partly due to the continuation last year of the energy tax rebate on natural gas, he said, while a push by Volkswagen in the CNG sector had also helped. Natural gas vehicles produce almost none of the fine particulates that exacerbate asthma, especially in children. Kehler also said that the data show that “natural gas is in increasing demand as an alternative fuel in times of diesel driving bans” and called for more incentives to further the trend.
“France is demonstrating how it can be done: a comprehensive subsidy program for commercial vehicles will provide further impetus for CNG technology," added Kehler.
Europe though has a long way to catch up other regions of the world when it come to natural gas vehicles (NGVs). According to latest data from industry association IANGV for 2018, four countries together account for almost two-thirds of the world's NGVs and none are in Europe. They are China with 6.02mn (23.2% of the world's NGVs), Iran 4.5mn (17.2%), followed by India 3.09mn and Pakistan 3mn NGVs.
'The Trend in Natural Gas Mobility: newly registered CNG-cars in Europe' (credit: Zukunft Erdgas)
Vertical axis is CNG vehicles registered. Countries from left to right are: Italy, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Czech Republic, Spain, France, Netherlands, Austria (Data sources: EAFO, Zukunft Erdgas)
The banner photo is courtesy of Italy's Snam