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TotalEnergies show a commitment to the transport sector with substantial investments in making natural gas as widely available as its petroleum based products.
CNG stands for compressed natural gas, which is a natural gas fuel stored at high pressure. It has been compressed to 200-250 bar and thus reduced to less than 1% of its volume at standard atmospheric pressure. This makes it easier to store and to transport.
CNG fuel is particularly suitable for passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, light trucks and buses. It offers trucks a range of around 550km. CNG vehicles driving on biomethane emit significantly less particulate matter* and CO 2 ** than conventional fossil fuels.
The renewable and non-fossil variant of CNG is biomethane or bioCNG. Biomethane is produced by fermenting biomass into biogas, which is purified and converted into grid quality gas. The biomass can consist of various types of raw materials, or feedstock, such as straw or tree bark and branches, or organic materials, such as food waste, roadside grass, sewage sludge and animal manure.
The biomethane, which consists of the same molecule as natural gas, namely CH 4 or methane, is then injected into the gas grid. The natural gas is subsequently extracted from the grid and compressed by means of a CNG installation to be used as transport fuel. Biomethane can be blended or used up to 100% depending on availability and customer requirements.
Growing Network of CNG stations
TotalEnergies strives to make alternative fuels that are cleaner and lower carbon available to as many users as possible. The acquisition of PitPoint in May 2017 has accelerated the growth of TotalEnergies’ CNG network in Western Europe. Today, TotalEnergies operates more than 190 public CNG stations in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and France.
In line with its strategic ambitions for natural gas and renewable energy, TotalEnergies aims to expand its European network to 450 NGV (Natural Gas Vehicle), refuelling stations – CNG as well as LNG – with more than 50% biomethane share by 2025; and thus become the market leader in the region.
Overseas, too, the number of NGV locations is growing. For example, in the Americas region, through TotalEnergies’ participation in Clean Energy Fuels in the US which, in 2021, operates more than 565 (bio)NGV stations, including some 45 (bio)LNG sites.
In Asia, TotalEnergies, through its joint venture with India’s Adani Group, operates more than 200 CNG stations today, with an overall regional target of 600 NGV stations across India and Pakistan by 2025.
* A study on air quality from the Sustainable Gas Institute (2019), ‘Can natural gas reduce emissions from transport?’, shows that NGV engines provide a NO x reduction of between 40%-60% (depending on the type of road) compared to diesel, by using a simple clean-up system. For particulate matter (PM), NGV engines ensure as much as 95% lower levels compared to diesel, thanks to a soot free combustion (with no need for a complex after-treatment).
** According to the NGVA Europe & Thinkstep study (2017) on the ‘Greenhouse Gas Intensity of Natural Gas in Transport’ (2017), a reduction in CO 2 emissions of up to 16% is achieved by driving on CNG compared to diesel for heavy-duty applications and calculated on a ‘Well-to-Wheel’ basis. Using biomethane increases this CO 2 reduction to as much as 80%.
How Do Natural Gas Vehicles Work?
Compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles operate much like gasoline-powered vehicles with spark-ignited internal combustion engines. The engine functions the same way as a gasoline engine. Natural gas is stored in a fuel tank, or cylinder, typically at the back of the vehicle. The CNG fuel system transfers high-pressure gas from the fuel tank through the fuel lines, where a pressure regulator reduces the pressure to a level compatible with the engine fuel injection system. Finally, the fuel is introduced into the intake manifold or combustion chamber, where it is mixed with air and then compressed and ignited by a spark plug.