Biogas West
Biogas West is the world’s first regional project for promoting biogas as vehicle fuel. Some 30 participants from privately and publicly owned companies, organizations, public authorities and municipal authorities make up the core of this unique public-private partnership.
Biogas West is a non-profit cluster in the Göteborg region and western Sweden, and the project is headed by Business Region Göteborg.The project commenced in 2001 to pursue market development within biogas production, the distribution and expansion of gas fuelling stations and the use of gas-powered vehicles.
Biogas West work to bring together all the players from the biogas chain:
- Producers
- Distributers
- Vehicle manufacturers
About Biogas Väst
The overall aim is stimulating market development within biogas production, distribution and the development of the gas-powered vehicle market. Biogas Väst is also seeking to develop expertise in concepts that could be exported.
When Biogas Väst started in 2001 there were nine gas fuelling stations and approximately 800 vehicles in western Sweden. By 2008 Western Sweden had the best infrastructure in the country with 36 gas fuelling stations, approximately 7,000 vehicles and eight facilities producing biogas for automotive purposes.
Methane gas for vehicles (biogas and naturalgas) replaced around 18 million liters of petrol in 2007, which is expected to reduce greenhouse gases by the equivalent of 22,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
Investment in western Sweden in biogas facilities, the infrastructure, fuelling stations, pipelines and swapbodies up to and including 2007 is estimated at around SEK 670 million. Investment in gas-powered vehicles — cars, light transport vehicles, buses and trucks — is estimated at SEK 1.8 — 2 billion.
In 2008, Business Region Göteborg received the American environmental prize ‘The Blue Sky Award´ for the creation of Biogas Väst. The prize was presented by the American non-profit organization Calstart, which has its operating base in California.
Why biogas?
Using biogas solves two environmental problems in one stroke. Since biogas is produced from waste products you help taking care of the waste issue at the same time as contributing to cleaner air, since biogas as a fuel does not add to the greenhouse effect.
The present drive to increase the use of biogas as vehicle fuel has its background in the European Commission´s objective to replace more than 20% of today´s vehicle fuels (fossil fuels such as gasoline and diesel) with other, renewable fuels. This means that more than 20 million cars will be running on natural gas, biogas, and other renewable fuels by 2020.
Biogas:
- is the vehicle fuel that generates the least emissions of greenhouse gases and regulated emissions from a life-cycle perspective
- is a domestic fuel that can be produced locally, creating a more secure energy supply and reducing dependence on oil
- produced from waste and residual products, avoiding any competition with food production
- contributes to sustainable agriculture
- contributes to the creation of a sustainable waste system
- currently has the greatest production potential within waste, agriculture and future gasification technology using forest residuas
- is expected to be capable of supplying approximately 20% of the vehicle fleet in Sweden by 2020
- is a bridge to hydrogen gas technology
Visit the Biogas West web site
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