HAM, Port de Barcelona and GALP have presented the first natural gas service station of the state port system, a key facility to promote the use of natural gas as an alternative fuel for land transport of goods.
The facility is located at the GALP filling station on Y street in the Port of Barcelona and is the result of a joint investment between HAM, responsible for the construction of the LNG station, and GALP, which has carried out the improvement of the facilities. In addition, its construction has been financed by European funds, through the CHAMeleon project, aimed at developing the gas supply infrastructure as vehicular fuel in the Barcelona-Slovenia land corridor. The new facility has two compressed natural gas (CNG) pumps for trucks and vehicles, two liquefied natural gas (LNG) pumps for trucks and a cryogenic LNG tank with 60 cubic meters of capacity.
The commissioning of this infrastructure is part of the Port of Barcelona’s Air Quality Improvement Plan, which aims to effectively reduce emissions from port activity. “This gas station is proof of the strong will of the Port of Barcelona to promote the use of an alternative, clean and sustainable fuel such as natural gas, which significantly reduces nitrogen oxide emissions and eliminates completely fine particles and oxides of sulfur,” said Mercè Conesa, president of the Port of Barcelona.
In the port area it is estimated that around 2.200 trucks transport goods to various destinations and origins of the area of ??influence (hinterland) of the Port. Currently, more than 60 trucks are powered by natural gas, either with dedicated engines (that work exclusively with gas) or with dual engines (which combine the use of diesel and natural gas). Of these, 26 trucks were transformed into the dual system thanks to the RePort project, led and coordinated by the Port of Barcelona with the support of ACCIÓ.
