In Germany, VERBIO Logistik GmbH, a subsidiary of independent biodiesel, ethanol, and biogas major VERBIO Vereinigte BioEnergy AG (VERBIO) has taken delivery of five IVECO Stralis 400 PS CNG trucks – including the 1000th Stralis NP vehicle. Powered by biomethane generated from 100 percent straw at VERBIO’s own production plant, these vehicles achieve a 90 percent carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction as well as a significant reduction in fine particles (PM) and NOx emissions compared to diesel.
Heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) are the backbone of the German economy. Not all freight can be transported by rail, which is why heavy goods transport represents a significant proportion of German traffic. The economic and ecological demands on goods transportation have increased immensely in the era of Dieselgate and the discussions concerning nitrogen emissions.
Heavy goods transport is characterised by the need to transport heavy loads over large distances. According to VERBIO, e-mobility in this sector is “definitely not” an option in the foreseeable future. However, both methane-powered engines as well as compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG) can be used to transport heavy vehicles in international transport with a range of up to 1 600 km.
IVECO, a member of the CNH Industrial N.V, was one of the first manufacturers of CNG HDVs, having invested in CNG more than twenty years ago. IVECO has been offering efficient and environmentally friendly CNG vehicles covering the entire spectrum of the heavy goods sector since 1996.
VERBIO is a key customer in the alternative natural gas fuel sector, as the fuel is also provided from renew-able sources. This provides clear evidence that heavy goods transport can be both climate-neutral and economical, said Pierre Lahutte, IVECO Brand President during the handing over of the vehicles at VERBIO’s biomethane plant in Schwedt.
VERBIO is winning with its own original industrial-scale technology for creating biomethane from straw and residual waste products, a worldwide first on this scale. The final product verbiogas is used throughout Germany as a biofuel for CNG vehicles in both the public and private sectors, as well as for heavy goods vehicles.
The IVECO Stralis CNG heavy goods vehicles are, for us, a logical and modern way to expand our vehicle fleet. In our fleet of around eighty heavy goods vehicles we already have twelve dual-fuel trucks powered by a diesel-CNG/biomethane mix. The single-mode CNG/biomethane en-gines used in the five new IVECO trucks will now make even better cost and CO2 efficiencies possible. The 400 PS Stralis model from IVECO is a powerful engine which meets the demands we have for bulk transport using heavy goods vehicles, not only meeting climate protection needs but also meeting our practical and economic needs, explained Bernd Sauter, Director, VERBIO Logistik.
