Scania to rent Danish drivers biomethane trucks in a trial

Scania is renting out bio-CNG G410 tractor units to its Danish truck customers so they can trial natural gas-powered trucks. Only 0.5% of Denmark’s trucks currently run on compressed natural gas (CNG), according to Anton Freiesleben from Scania Danmark. Furthermore, Freiesleben claimed that Scania could achieve in excess of 100% carbon dioxide emission reduction because the organic waste used to produce the biogas would otherwise have been used as agricultural fertiliser, leading to increased methane emissions.

Anaerobically digested waste can be processed for use as a fossil-free vehicle fuel, and shifting to biomethane operations is presently the quickest, most economical way of reducing the heavy transport industry’s carbon footprint. As many customers are still reluctant to make the switch, Scania Danmark has come up with an imaginative scheme: it is offering a bio-CNG G 410 tractor for rent.

“In Denmark, only 0.5% of trucks run on natural gas. There is a definite potential to substantially raise that share. By offering customers trials through short-term rentals, we hope to demystify gas propulsion. We want to let customers discover for themselves just how good our modern gas trucks actually are and how simple they are to operate,” said Scania Danmark’s Sales Director Anton Freiesleben.

There are now 17 filling stations in the country for CNG and the only fuel available at these stations is biogas. “So, we can claim more than 100% CO2 reduction. How, you might ask, can we exceed 100%? The answer is that if the organic waste from agriculture had not been anaerobically digested to biogas, it would be spread as fertilizer on farmland, emitting methane which is a much more harmful greenhouse gas than CO2,” he commented

The biomethane truck for rent is a 4×2 tractor that suits the many common transport operations in Denmark. A tractor is more standardized than a rigid truck, which is usually configured for specific transport tasks.

Source: Scania