German Pair Team up to Expand LNG Filling Network

German engineering firms Bilfinger EMS has and Greeen Solutions has signed a framework agreement on expanding the LNG filling station network of Bavaria-based fuel retailer Alternoil, Bilfinger said in a statement on May 27.

The aim is to establish a comprehensive filling station network for LNG-fuelled trucks, providing a more environmentally friendly alternative to diesel, Bilfinger said. Greeen was hired by Alternoil as the project's developer, and has selected Bilfinger as a technology partner in the stations' design, construction and maintenance.

The first of the stations will be installed before the end of this year at locations in Bremen, Melle, Cologne, Greding and Ettenheim. Alternoil in October opened what was at the time the largest LNG filling station in Europe in the Lower Saxony city of Bakum, and a further ten are already under construction or at the approval phase.

The German government has launched a subsidy programme aimed at encouraging heavy goods vehicles to switch from diesel to alternative fuels.

"There is a clear trend towards LNG," Bilfinger said, noting that an EU directive stipulated that LNG vehicles must be able to fill up anywhere in the European transport network by 2025 at the latest. Uniper subsidiary Liqvis is among other German entities building LNG refuelling infrastructure, focusing on sites near motorways in the north.