WP7.3: Feasibility study about the MED Blue Corridor

Transcription

1 EUROPEAN COMMISSION DG MOVE SEVENTH FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME GC.SST GA No WP7.3: Feasibility study about the MED Blue Corridor contained therein. Deliverable LNG BC D7.3 Deliverable Dissemination Written By Checked by Approved by LNG Blue Corridors Project is supported by the European Commission under the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7). The sole responsibility for the content of this document lies with the authors. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union. Neither the FP7 nor the European Commission is responsible for any use that may be made of the information Feasibility study about the MEDblue Corridor Public Thomas Gromeier Flavio Mariani Javier Lebrato Issue date 25/05/2018

2 Revision history and statement of originality Rev Date Author Organization Description Thomas Gromeier Eni Index and Initial Draft Thomas Gromeier Eni Maps, corridor description, tables Thomas Gromeier Eni Completion Flavio Mariani NGVA Revision Statement of originality: This deliverable contains original unpublished work except where clearly indicated otherwise. Acknowledgement of previously published material and of the work of others has been made through appropriate citation, quotation or both. 2/49

3 Contents Revision history and statement of originality Executive Summary Introduction Abbreviations Corridor Description Corridor Maturity LNG Stations in the LNG BC Project LNG Station supply terminals LNG Stations outside the LNG Blue Corridor Project Estimate for LNG Stations to reach 5% market penetration Fleet Maturity Amount of external LNG trucks at LNG-BC Station example of the Piacenza Station LNG Truck OEM offer LNG Truck OEM offer Vehicle Cost LNG vehicle cost Efficiency of the LNG power train Station Layout Safety at the Service Station Storage tank thermal management and boil-off avoidance Availability of LNG and L-CNG Saturated and unsaturated LNG Station Location Renewable LNG From Biogas to BioLNG - Infrastructure Purification Liquefaction /49

4 10 Outlook and suggestions Fiscal policy LNG technological trends Technology transfer from the bus to the truck Engine and LNG vehicle tank technology Commercial LNG market maturity Suggestions List of Tables Project Partners /49

5 1 Executive Summary The MED Blue Corridor, part of the Ten-T Mediterranean infrastructure, links two strong markets in Europe for LNG fueled heavy transport, Spain and Italy. While Spain has a long history in liquefied natural gas Italy had not a single service station prior to the LNG Blue Corridors Piacenza project. The Piacenza station led to a total of 15 LNG stations operating today throughout nearly all of in Italy and the possibility of LNG based infrastructure reaching out to Budapest. Figure 1-1 Ten-T Mediterranean Corridor LNG is actually exiting the demonstration phase and can be considered being firmly into implementation as environmentally and commercially superior alternative to diesel fuel. Continuing strong buildup of LNG service station infrastructure in Italy and France appears to continue and will support the transition from essentially local transport in the 300 km radius to international hauling as intended by LNG Blue Corridors project. The key issues to solve remains cost-efficient reliability of LNG supply. Reliability is still impacted by the long supply lines for Italian LNG and the limited LNG storage volume at the station. Availability is a challenge due to numerous single point of failures and a not yet fully built up service infrastructure. Opening hours will need to be extended everywhere to h24/365. Long haul logistics based on LNG starts with 24h fuel availability throughout the corridor. 5/49

6 2 Introduction The LNG Blue Corridors project s aim is to establish LNG as an alternative for medium- and longdistance transport first as a complementary fuel and later as an environmentally better compatible substitute for diesel. The common use of natural gas for heavy vehicles has been in the past in municipal use, e.g. for urban buses and garbage collection trucks. In both types of application engine performance and range are covered by present technology. Analyzing the physical properties of LNG consumption data, the equivalence in autonomy of 1 liter of diesel oil is 5 liters of CNG (Compressed Natural Gas), compressed to 200 bar. Five times more volume of the fuel and corresponding cost and weight of on-board high pressure storage tanks prevents the use of CNG in long distance road transport. Another limiting factor for CNG is the considerable energy consumption for compression and the long time required for fueling in the gaseous phase. This opens the way for LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas). Liquefying NG is necessarily required to be able to transport the gas from the wellhead to the point of utilization when a pipeline is not feasible due to distance, natural obstacles or cost. As a welcome side effect many less desirable components of NG are eliminated by cooling it down to -162º C, the condensation point at atmospheric pressure. The energy cost is only 5% of the original gas. LNG is odorless, colorless, non-toxic and non-corrosive. To store the same energy as Diesel an LNG storage tank needs to have indicatively twice the size but the fuel will actually weigh about 17% less. This makes LNG for practical purposes in a trailer truck equivalent to Diesel, weight being generally the more critical parameter. LNG opens the way to the use of NG for long-distance road transport and is suitable for long, medium and short range. LNG has huge potential for contributing to achieving Europe s policy objectives, such as the Commission s targets for greenhouse gas reduction, air quality targets, while at the same time reducing dependency on crude oil and guaranteeing better supply security. Natural gas heavy-duty vehicles already comply with Euro VI emission standards, generally without the complex, costly and heavy exhaust gas after-treatment technologies required for Diesel. To meet the objectives, a series of LNG refueling points have been defined along the four corridors covering the Atlantic area (green line), the Mediterranean region (red line) and connecting Europe s South with the North (blue line) and its West and East (yellow line) accordingly. In order to implement a sustainable transport network for Europe, the project has set the goal to build approximately 14 new LNG stations, both permanent and mobile, on critical locations along the Blue Corridors whilst building up a fleet of approximately 100 Heavy-Duty Vehicles powered by LNG. This European project is financed by the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), with the amount of 7.96 M (total investments amounting to M ), involving 27 partners from 11 countries. 6/49

7 This document corresponds to the 3rd deliverable within work package 7. The goal of this deliverable is to assess viability of the Mediterranean LNG corridor. This document will be available at the project website: Abbreviations BC BOG CNG HDV LBM LDV L-CNG LNG MPa NG NGV OEM PLC Blue Corridors Boil Off Gas Compressed Natural Gas Heavy Duty Vehicle Liquefied Bio Methane Light Duty Vehicle Compressed Natural Gas generated from LNG Liquefied Natural Gas Megapascal, 1 Megapascal is equivalent to 10 bar Natural Gas Natural Gas Vehicle Original Equipment Manufacturer Programmable Logic Controller 7/49

8 3 Corridor Description Description of the LNG refueling infrastructure built during the LNG Blue Corridor Project, with consideration also for stations not participating. Indication of infrastructure necessary for 5% penetration of LNG in road based logistics. The LNG Blue Corridors project was launched by the EU with the intention to kick-start the LNG infrastructure expansion out of the island areas where LNG acquired a market position due to particular favorable local conditions, e.g. Spain, Netherlands and UK. Spain build a LNG trailer truck distribution infrastructure instead of a pipeline network, Netherlands and UK are producers of significant quantities of natural gas. Originally 4 Corridors along the TEN-T infrastructure as in the figure below were proposed: Figure 3-1: LNG BC Corridors, source LNGBC During the projects development, which saw significant differences in the convenience of the use of LNG, fundamentally created by the combination of national taxation on Diesel fuel combined with the 8/49

9 incentives available for heavy transport. The figure below represents an intermediate project state for the four corridors West-East (WE), South-North (SoNor), Mediterranean (Med-Blue) and Atlantic (ATL-Blue). Figure LNG-BC Corridors, source LNGBC The final evolution of the Blue-Med Corridor today starts at Sines in Portugal and ends in southern direction at Pontedera, Italy (see figure below). 9/49

10 Figure 3-3Blue Med Corridor Final Evolution The distances in final configuration appear well beyond the Commissions 400 km target (see figure below) Figure 3-4 Blue-MED Distances Assuming an average range of 800 km the 400 km distances allows for one station being out of service without blocking the LNG powered traffic along the corridor. This creates apparent issues for the Sines Barcellona tract, which is covered by the already well built up LNG infrastructure in Spain and a real lack of redundancy for the tract from Nimes to Piacenza, where today no halfway intermediate fueling is available. The main roads involved are E903 and E15 in Spain, A8 and A9 in France and E70, E35 and E33 in Italy as indicated in the map below: 10/49

11 Figure 3-5 Blue-Med Corridor Overview Following the standards for Diesel long haul trucks it can be assumed that other OEMs will follow IVECO s lead with double LNG tank configuration and range above 1,500 km. 11/49

12 Going into more detail about the single tracts the first part from Sines to Barcelona via Valencia, with a total distance of about 1,280 km, involves also the already operating LNG stations of Mérida and Alaqas. There is still a 600 km distance in between. In case of a major station breakdown alternative routes in Spain would be possible. Figure 3-6 Sines - Barcellona The Barcelona Nimes part is perfectly in line with the Commissions distance recommendations of 400km: 12/49

13 Figure 3-7 Barcelona - Nimes The same does not apply for the following tract from Nimes to Piacenza with 600km distance. The only en route station available would be Novi Ligure shortening the trip only by 80km. Figure 3-8 Nimes - Piacenza The Pontedera LNG site was chosen for the double purpose of supplying LNG for the traffic revolving around the logistics center of Leghorn and opening the route for LNG towards the produce markets of southern Italy. Its distance of 250 km from Piacenza does not require intermediate LNG stations. Figure 3-9 Piacenza - Pontedera 13/49

14 4 Corridor Maturity Description of the LNG refueling infrastructure built during the LNG Blue Corridor Project, with consideration also for stations not participating. Distances between stations and terminals are listed. Finally an indication of infrastructure necessary for 5% penetration of LNG in road based logistics is provided. The LNG Blue Corridors Project defines 4 pathways along the Trans-European Ten-T network, West- East Blue from Edinburgh to Pontedera, South-North from Portugal to Stockholm, Atlantic Blue from Portugal to Edinburgh and the Mediterranean corridor Med-Blue from Portugal to Venice (see figure below) Figure 4-1 LNG Blue Corridors 14/49

15 Figure 4-2 Med Blue Corridor Detail The corridor stations implementation phase, following careful analysis of commercial demand, saw an extension of the original design into central Italy with the Pontedera station. As the actual LNG station network development shows Pontedera can be considered instrumental for opening up the southern part of Italy to LNG. The station is also strategically close to the future potential LNG terminal at Leghorn. LNG stations external to the project close to Venice are already available. Med-Blue Sines Barcelona Nimes Piacenza Pontedera Corridor [km Sines 0 1,269 1,631 2,243 2,533 Barcelona 1, ,048 Nimes 1, Piacenza 2, Pontedera 2,533 1, Table 4-1 Distances Med-Blue Corridor In Italy the installation of the Piacenza LNG stations jumpstarted considerable competition. This happens either in the immediate vicinity in case of particularly attractive sites or along the major truck routes within range of the initial station. 15/49

16 The key factor in this development is, a part from the commercial margin, the better insight into cost and time requirements schedule for permitting, the development of specific procedures and the demonstration of the feasibility of LNG supply logistics. The strong development of the LNG service station network is indicated in the figure below: Image 1: Planned LNG Stations (yellow) Especially in Italy the progress is extremely promising: Image 2: Planned LNG stations Italy (yellow) 16/49

17 4.1 LNG Stations in the LNG BC Project Sines Photo Location Operator Supply terminals EU Corridors Intermodal connection (Rail, Road, Ship) Industrial areas Permanent/Mobile Saturated/Unsaturated LNG L-CNG Boil off recovery Storage tank size Number of LNG nozzles Number of CNG nozzles Comment The station in Sines is far behind schedule, as it is still under construction in May 2018 Sines, Portugal, on Highway A26 close to the port and LNG terminal GALP Sines (4km) Atlantic TEN-T Corridor Highway A26, Grandola intermodal center for rail Yes, industrial area and port of Sines Permanent station Saturated Yes Yes Yes, via CH4 collection tubes and BOG compressor na na na void 17/49

18 Barcelona Photo Location Operator Supply terminals EU Corridors Intermodal connection (Rail, Road, Ship) Industrial areas Permanent/Mobile Saturated/Unsaturated LNG L-CNG Boil off recovery Santa Perpetua de Mogoda, Carrer Guifré el Pilós, 295, Barcelona, Spain Gas Natural Fenosa Barcelona Ten-T Mediterranean Corridor Yes, Barcelona Port and Railroad connection, located AP7 highway Barcelona Zona Franca Permanent Saturated Yes Yes Yes, via CH4 collection tubes and BOG compressor Storage tank size 60 m 3 Number of LNG nozzles 1 Number of CNG nozzles 1 Comment void 18/49

19 Nimes Photo Location Operator Supply terminals EU Corridors Intermodal connection (Rail, Road, Ship) Industrial areas Permanent/Mobile Saturated/Unsaturated LNG L-CNG Boil off recovery Nimes Engie Marseille Fos Tonkin (70 km), Barcelona (400 km) TEN-T Mediterranean Corridor, motorway A9 Port of Marseille at 70 km, Avignon Railway station No industrial areas are close by. The position is strategic for outbound traffic from Spain to the north or to Italy. Mobile, will become permanent Saturated 1 nozzle JC Carter, venting Macrotech not yet tbd Storage tank size 20 m 3 Number of LNG nozzles 1 Number of CNG nozzles 0 Comment Currently a temporary station with 20 m³ storage capacity and LNG only (JC Carter filling & Macrotech venting). Future station: 60 m³ storage capacity and LNG & L-CNG Piacenza 19/49

20 Photo Location Operator Supply terminals EU Corridors Intermodal connection (Rail, Road, Ship) Industrial areas Permanent/Mobile Saturated/Unsaturated LNG L-CNG Boil off recovery Via Caorsana 46, Piacenza PC, Italy Eni Marseille Fos Tonkin (564 km), Barcelona (1,003 km) TEN-T Mediterranean Corridor Polo Logistico Piacenza (Railway) Piacenza Industrial Area Permanent Saturated 1 nozzle JC Carter, venting Macrotech Yes Yes, Storage tank size 60 m 3 Number of LNG nozzles 1 Number of CNG nozzles 2 Comment Excellent position of the station, sales volume reaching 4,000 t/year Pontedera 20/49

21 Photo Location Operator Supply terminals EU Corridors Intermodal connection (Rail, Road, Ship) Industrial areas Permanent/Mobile Saturated/Unsaturated LNG L-CNG Boil off recovery Highway FI PI LI, KM 56,875, Curigliane, Pontedera (PI) Eni Marseille Fos Tonkin (608km), Barcelona (1,047km) None Highway Leghorn Florence, Port of Leghorn Leghorn Industrial Area Picchianti Permanent Saturated Yes Yes Yes Storage tank size 100 m 3 Number of LNG nozzles 1, plant P&I designed for 2 with basement and connections provided Number of CNG nozzles 2 Comment 21/49

22 4.2 LNG Station supply terminals The transport distance of LNG impacts cost, reliability of supply and minimum storage temperature. LNG Stations like Sines, Barcelona and Nimes with supply lines below 100 km have a significant commercial advantage. In case the LNG needs to be transported over a national border limitations to the allowed maximum weight and/or time constraints may apply with evident impact on transport cost. The further built up of LNG will require, especially in Italy, at least one terminal and possibly a series of smaller intermediate storage terminal for LNG barges in the 30,000 m 3 storage capacity range. The growing maritime use of LNG will have a positive impact also on road transport since both will require distributed LNG storage facilities. At the moment the lack of LNG terminals in Italy means that any minor roadblock puts a significant part of the transport infrastructure out of use. With rising numbers of LNG trucks the actual system of substituting LNG trucks with Diesel will no longer be feasible. In Italy shallow water terminals are under construction or in the advanced planning phase in Oristano, Sardinia, Porto Marghera, Venice and Ravenna. A possible terminal location is also Leghorn in Tuscany. Station / Sines Barcelona Nimes Piacenza Pontedera Terminal [km] Sines ,650 2,250 2,300 Barcelona ,000 1,050 Fos Tonkin 1, Zeebruge 2,150 1,350 1,000 1,100 1,400 Ravenna* 2,450 1, Table 4-2 Blue Med Stations and Terminals (*Ravenna planned, others are operative) Given the operative experience gained with the Piacenza station it can be assumed that distances up to about 1,000 km can be handled even with the constraint of a limited storage tank of 60 m 3, typical for the first generation LNG stations. From the table above it becomes clear that every one of the Blue Med Corridor stations can be supplied from at least two different terminals. Should Ravenna become operative three terminals would be available. The redundancy at the terminal level is consequently satisfactory. 22/49

23 4.3 LNG Stations outside the LNG Blue Corridor Project As of April 2018 the operative LNG stations in Italy are 16, including the two LNG BC stations (in bold). No Brand City Country 1 Eni Teramo Italy 2 Eni San Casciano in Val di Pesa Italy 3 Eni Piacenza Italy 4 Eni Pontedera Italy 5 Maganetti Gera Lario Italy 6 Esso Modena Italy 7 Esso Corridonia Italy 8 GetOil Saronno Italy 9 Iper Noceto Italy 10 Iperal Gera Lario Italy 11 MZ Brembate Italy 12 SMP Meolo Italy 13 Spoil Sarmato Italy 14 TotalErg Pontedera Italy 15 VGE Castel San Pietro Terme Italy 16 Vulcangas Rimini Italy Table 3: LNG Stations Italy (source NGVA) From evidence provided by partners and suppliers and from a variety of announcements in the web there are at least another 14 LNG station projects in various project phases which will come on line in 2018 and early /49

24 Also in France 16 LNG stations are operative, including one LNG BC station (in bold): No. City Country 1 AirLiquide Station Lille France 2 AirLiquide Station Gaël France 3 AirLiquide Station Duttlenheim France 4 AirLiquide Station Fleville-devant-Nancy France 5 Avia Montélimar France 6 Avia Limoges France 7 Avia Cholet France 8 AXÈGAZ Frétin France 9 AXÈGAZ Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois France 10 engie-gnvert Bondoufle France 11 Gas Natural Fenosa Bordeaux France 12 Gas Natural Fenosa Castets France 13 Gas Natural Fenosa Migné-Auxances France 14 GNVert Villeneuve lès Boulouc France 15 GNVert Orly France 16 V-Gas CNG Station (CAT) Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône France Table 4: LNG Stations France (source NGVA) 24/49

25 In Spain, a historically well-developed market for LNG trucking, there are 25 LNG stations on line, one of them participating in LNG BC (in bold). No. Name City Country 1 Avia Olaberria Spain 2 Beroil Burgos Spain 3 BIONET Tarragona Spain 4 BP Tres Cantos Spain 5 Endesa Madrid Spain 6 Endesa Algeciras Spain 7 Galp San Sebastián de los Reyes Spain 8 Gas Natural Fenosa Motilla del Palancar Spain 9 Gas Natural Fenosa Barcelona Spain 10 Gas Natural Fenosa Nanclares de la Oca Spain 11 Gas Natural Fenosa Alovera Spain 12 Gas Natural Fenosa Ribarroja Spain 13 Gas Natural Fenosa Santa Perpètua de Mogoda Spain 14 HAM Abrera Spain 15 HAM Sant Sadurní d'anoia Spain 16 HAM Mérida Spain 17 HAM Valencia Spain 18 HAM Sevilla Spain 19 HAM Irun Spain 20 Ortegaloil Fene Spain 21 Petromiralles Torremocha del Campo Spain 22 Portuoil Zierbena Spain 23 Q San Isidro Spain 24 Repsol Guarromán Spain 25 Repsol Jerez de la Frontera Spain 25/49

26 Portugal has 7 LNG stations on line: No. Name City Country 1 Dourogás Carregado Portugal 2 Dourogás 4520 Santa Maria da Feira Portugal 3 Galp Elvas Portugal 4 Galp Matosinhos Portugal 5 Galp Azambuja Portugal 6 Goldenergy 5370 Mirandela Portugal 7 Prio Loures Portugal The LNG BC projects impact is probably most marked in Italy. 26/49

27 4.4 Estimate for LNG Stations to reach 5% market penetration The total road freight transport volume by distance class is listed in the table below: Less than 150 km From 150 to 299 km From 300 to 999 km Over km 2014 (million tkm) Change (%) 2014 (million tkm) Change (%) 2014 (million tkm) Change (%) 2014 (million tkm) Change (%) EU Belgium Bulgaria Czech Republic Denmark Germany Estonia Ireland Greece Spain France Croatia Italy Cyprus Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Hungary Malta : : : : : : : : Netherlands Austria Poland Portugal Romania Slovenia Slovakia Finland Sweden United Kingdom Norway Switzerland Table 5: Road freight transport by distance class, 2014; source: Eurostat (online data code: road_go_ta_dc) Less than 150 km From 150 to 299 km From 300 to 999 km Over km 27/49

28 To calculate the necessary infrastructure for a 5% market penetration in LNG based heavy transport we assume the Med-Blu Corridor will have to cover 10% of the total ton-kilometers in Portugal, 30% in Spain, 20% in France and 100% in Italy as listed in the table below (data extracted from table above): Less than 150 km From 150 to 299 km From 300 to 999 km Over km LNG BC Corridor 2014 Change (%) 2014 Change (%) 2014 Change (%) 2014 (million tkm) (million tkm) (million tkm) (million tkm) Change (%) Territorial coverage factor Portugal 4, , , , % Spain 31, , , , % France 52, , , , % Italy 29, , , , % Total corrected tkm 50,165,6 47, , ,142.9 Total 213,001.9 To calculate total LNG consumption for resulting ton-kilometers the average load needs to be calculated. As from the table below an average value of 14 t can be assumed. Figure 3: Average Payload weight on Loaded Truck Journeys This value needs to be further corrected for the level of empty running as indicated in the table below: 28/49

29 Figure 4: Average Percentage of Truck -kms Run Empty in EU Countries 2008 At LNG Blue-Med corridor level 30% of empty truck kilometers can be assumed which, for an average load of 14 tons, gives an overall average load of 9.8 t. This allows the calculation of the total LNG consumption required, based on a prudential truckconsumption of 28 kg/100km, which results in a total requirement of about 4,260,000 t of LNG. Considering a target of 5% the total LNG required is 213,000t. The key parts of the supply chain, which will handle these quantities, are the LNG Terminal, LNG Logistics and LNG Service Station. In Portugal, Spain and France terminals for ocean-going LNG tankers with the possibility of unloading to ground in liquid phase and the necessary equipment for truck loading are already operative. Only Italy does actually not have a LNG terminal with these characteristics. The developing demand in Italy for LNG in industrial and transport applications lead to a small scale terminal construction start in Oristano, Sardinia. This terminal will become operative in the second half of 2019 but is not immediately suited to be part of a supply chain for the Italian mainland. Other initiatives are ongoing and will lead to the buildup of the necessary capabilities, for example in Leghorn and the Venice area. In the meantime, as has been demonstrated with the successful management of logistics especially for Piacenza, the supply from Fos Tonkin is feasible with only minor impact on fuel availability due to the long logistic supply line. The economic impact on LNG cost remains evident. 29/49

30 The logistics between terminal and service station will grow organically with the sales volume. There are no relevant hurdles for the necessary increase in capacity. Given the relative simplicity and speed of installation of LNG service stations this part of the infrastructure may also be considered not critical. Relevant investments are already under way, e.g. in Italy at the end of 2019 a total of about 30 LNG station will be operative. The limiting factor for LNG s share growth in road transport appears to be the production capacity of the OEM s for LNG trucks rather than infrastructure limitations. 30/49

31 5 Fleet Maturity The LNG Blue Corridors projects establishes the LNG vehicle park and the corresponding supply infrastructure. The total number of trucks involved in the LNG BC project is Amount of external LNG trucks at LNG-BC Station example of the Piacenza Station The trucks fueling at LNG BC infrastructure but not participating in the projects have not been formally traced. Based on the April 2018 data from the Piacenza station, chosen because it represents a typical sales volume, at the low end, for a truck station, the analysis results in: The average number of trucks per day is 57. In Italy 14 trucks are participating in LNG Blue Corridors, so an average of minimum 43 trucks external to the project is frequenting the station. At least for Italy this indicates a leverage of 400% in trucks on the road for the LNG BC incentives. Nearly 5 trucks fuel in every hour, with the shortest interval between fueling being 5 minutes. This high frequency on a single LNG dispenser is possible due to experienced drivers and served fueling. The average fueling is 184kg and the median 167kg, indicating prevalent short haul/low weight traffic. Out of 1,417 LNG fuellings 6 had a volume of less than 10 kg. 4 fuellings out of this 6 can be attributed to first time tank cooling for new vehicles. The actual nozzle and dispenser technology is evidently efficient in served mode. 5.3 LNG Truck OEM offer The offer of OEM LNG trucks at the start of the project was limited essentially to the IVECO Stralis 330 hp tractor. This trucks power was not sufficient to deliver optimal service in the generally hilly terrain of the Blue Med corridor. It was successfully employed where the load was limited as for example in deliveries to supermarkets. The successive development of higher powered trucks, up to the actual IVECO 460 hp and the upcoming Volvo LNG FH460 in the same power range enables LNG powered transport for all kinds of on-road duty. The technical maturation for general purpose LNG trucks shows, at the end of the projects timeframe, Blue Corridors projects, three mayor OEM LNG trucks suppliers present in the market. 31/49

32 It has been observed that maintenance of LNG trucks, initially specified at intervals significantly lower than for comparable diesel trucks, is aligning to Diesel standards and may in some cases go beyond. The market will reach maturity once also the optimum truck lifetime with the first buyer and the resale value will be established. It seems counterintuitive that actual resale values of LNG trucks is little more than the acquisition cost of the LNG storage tank with the necessary accessories. The LNG storage tank lifetime, given the required very high material quality, will probably be comparable to the trucks life or go even beyond. Once a second hand market is established and the relevant parameters are known the reduction of risk will presumably lead to overall lower cost. 5.4 LNG Truck OEM offer The OEM trucks present in the LNG BC project are Iveco, Scania and Volvo with a large numerical prevalence for Iveco. Technologically Iveco had a head start using an engine derived from a CNG-powered bus for its initial LNG truck offer. In Europe the relevant OEM manufacturers, a part the ones already mentioned, are DAF, Daimler, MAN and Renault. DAF: Daimler: MAN: Renault: The controlling American company PACCAR has been a market leader in manufacturing trucks powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and compressed natural gas (CNG) since 1996 with over 35% U.S. market share. DAF does not actually offer an OEM LNG truck in Europe. Does not offer a dedicated LNG truck but has the technology for CNG bus engines in house. Controlled by the Volkswagen group MAN might benefit from Scania technology since Scania also is part of Volkswagen. Renault is part of Volvo Trucks and will probably share Volvo s LNG technology. 32/49

33 6 Vehicle Cost The LNG Blue Corridors infrastructure costs for service stations, assuming the average construction cost for an LNG and L-CNG station of about 1 million Euro, results in a total of 14 million Euro which is about the same investment necessary for the 138 trucks (assuming a truck cost between 72,000 and 114,500 for a total of about 15.2 Mio. Euro on a 110,000 /truck base). The necessary investment to make LNG based heavy transport happen is about 10% in service stations and 90% in the vehicle park. 6.1 LNG vehicle cost The cost per vehicle to the logistics company is influenced by the following factors: Commercial maturity: the first trucks in the market were available at generally favorable conditions from the OEM. The buyer assumed a considerable part of the commercial risk. This effect is not present since about Size of LNG fleet acquired and commercial relationship with the OEM and structure of the fleet. If the fleet is from a single OEM conditions tend to be better. Unless the LNG truck resale values and engine lifetimes are known reliably from field experience the uncertainty is priced into the initial offer from the OEM s. Diesel truck engine lifetime can be estimated at 1,500,000 km. Gas engines have advantages due to cleaner burning fuel and disadvantages due to less lubrication from the fuel itself and higher outlet temperatures. It will take 10 years of truck operation to acquire this data. Some information will be forthcoming in 2018 when the first Iveco 330 hp LNG trucks will enter the resale market. The LNG equipment is still in a low volume production phase, considering the about 3,000 LNG trucks presently in use in Europe. Higher production volumes will allow for significant cost reduction but a real positive downward spiraling of cost is not yet apparent. Any cost reduction will reduce the value of pre-owned trucks and the OEM sales prices. 33/49

34 Comparing from a technical point of view the difference in construction between Diesel and LNG powered trucks the main items are: Item LNG (Iveco) Diesel Tank system Ignition Fuel injection system Complex cryogenic pressurized tank with a series of valves, specific safety equipment and heat exchangers. Complex high powered ignition system Standard injectors for gaseous fuel Single walled standard Diesel tank Not required Complex high pressure common rail injection system Exhaust after treatment Three way catalyst Three way catalyst, Selective catalytic reduction system for NOx abatement, AdBlue tank and injection system, particulate filter The cost for the ignition system of the LNG truck balances out with the cost for the high pressure fuel injection system of the Diesel truck. The LNG truck will have a considerable extra cost of about 20,000 for the LNG storage tank that is only partially balanced out by the considerable cheaper simple three way catalyst exhaust after treatment. In conclusion it appears that the lower resale value of the LNG truck due to market uncertainty and the higher cost for the on board storage tank compound today a cost disadvantage of the LNG truck in the 20,000-40,000 range. It is also evident that increasing production LNG truck production volumes has the potential to solve both issues, creating a self-reinforcing downward spiral in LNG truck cost. Nothing comparable can be expected for Diesel trucks were technological maturity excludes important cost reduction. To the contrary, increasing attention on exhaust and noise has a potential to render the Diesel-based technology more expensive. 34/49

35 6.2 Efficiency of the LNG power train The energy efficiency of the LNG power train has been compared within LNG BC based on a limited scale test based on a diesel and LNG powered truck fleet at Genova. The timeframe was January to December 2017 with 16 Diesel trucks and 5 LNG powered trucks involved in very similar or identical transport applications. The Diesel trucks, in the timeframe, had a total traveled distance of 1,560,000 km with an average speed of km/h and average yearly kilometres per truck Truck Model Diesel MB 1845 Automatic 12 M E6/80 and IVECO 460 AUTOM. 12M E6/70 LNG Iveco 400 LNG Automatic 12M E6/70 Timeframe 01/ / / /2017 Number of trucks 16 5 Total distance traveled 1,560,000 km 612,000 km Average truck distance 97,700 km 122,309 km Average truck speed km/h km/h Distance traveled per unit km/l km/kg Consumption per 100 km l/100km kg/100km Energy per 100km 294 kwh/100km 398 kwh/100km Efficiency estimate 34% 25% The diesel truck average speed was 1.28% higher which is compatible with the more powerful engine used. Based on an average energy requirement for a heavy duty truck of about 100 kw the efficiency of the diesel drivetrain at 34% is noticeably higher than the 25% delivered by the LNG truck. This is expected given the very good performance of the Diesel cycle in specific fuel consumption. 35/49

36 The gap between Diesel and LNG will narrow in the near future since this evaluation compares a 400 hp LNG engine with a 460 hp diesel engine where the Diesel engine will consume less for being higher powered and technologically more mature. LNG technology in heavy transport is only recently employed in larger scale and new technologies like High Pressure Direct LNG Injection have good potential to reduce specific consumption. 36/49

37 7 Station Layout The key difference to service stations for traditional fuel is the cost of the main station components, e.g. dispenser, storage tank and piping which is considerably higher in LNG compared to traditional liquid fuels. 7.2 Safety at the Service Station The operative experience of the MED-Blue corridor stations did not generate significant incidents. The key safety related activities at the service stations are: - Switching the station from operative state to shut down and back - Storage tank filling from trailer truck - LNG saturation - Truck fueling - Weight & Measures verification - Storage temperature reduction via LNG swap - Handling of equipment malfunction Switching on and shutting down of the station are standard procedures normally performed by the service station personnel after about 8h training from the LNG equipment manufacturer. The design of the PLC software together with redundant methane sensors and position sensors for the relevant valves makes it possible to design a process which guarantees effective and safe station startup and shutdown. Filling the storage tank from the trailer truck requires a mechanical connection of the LNG hose between trailer and plant which has proven reliable but may generate limited NG spillage in case the gasket is no longer performing perfectly. A spare part should be kept on site. The procedures involved are partially or totally automated through the PLC. The trailer truck is connected normally to the LNG equipment in such a way that in case of a LNG shutdown the trailer pump will also stop and the pneumatic LNG valve will automatically shut off the flow, Saturation is automatically or manually launched and generally uneventful. Truck fueling will require the standard personal safety devices for protection from small drops of LNG consisting in a face mask, gloves and complete skin coverage. Weight and Measures dispenser verification is a complex procedure involving an external LNG tank mounted on a mobile base with the possibility to determine the exact weight of its content. Even if all measurements prove to be within the correct margins a significant quantity of LNG will be put into this storage tank. Only L-CNG equipped stations have the necessary pumps to empty the test tank directly on site and the procedure will require hydraulic connections to be made on the forecourt. At least two people are necessary for the operation at it is specified today. The technical complexity and the rather unnecessary risk should stimulate the research for alternative solutions, for example by precisely and permanently checking the LNG product balance of the service station allowing for immediate error detection in case the mass flow meter no longer works correctly. 37/49

38 This procedure may be implemented as an automatic feature in the PLC. The Weight & Measures officer will no longer be necessary for the on-site checks. The proposed procedure is derived from existing control systems in traditional fuel and fiscal checks on slot machines. Excessive storage temperature increase occurs when sales are low, typically early in the stations commercial startup period. The heat introduced into the storage tank from the outside and L-CNG pump cooling down procedure is superior to the heat taken out by supplying fresh LNG. The internal temperature of the storage tank slowly rises up until about -120 to -125 when it will become increasingly difficult to fuel the truck tank since the LNG pressure will be close to the point of intervention of the safety valve at the truck. At this point cooling of the LNG storage tank is necessary to allow continuous operation. In case of equipment malfunction the on-site personnel needs to be aware of all safety related procedures and should have sufficient understanding of the plant to be able to operate continuously in safe manner. Interventions on the plant equipment by the station personnel to maintain the capacity to operate should be limited to the exchange of gaskets. 7.3 Storage tank thermal management and boil-off avoidance LNG thermal management is only an issue in exceptional operating conditions, for example very low sales volume or very cold deliveries into a nearly empty station storage. The storage tank temperature range for LNG stations is determined on the cold side by the minimum delivery temperature of about -158 C to -153 C in the trailer truck equivalent to a pressure around 0.2 MPa. Once the station storage tank reaches -120 C the pressure of about 1.2 MPa becomes critically close to the threshold for safety valve of the truck tank and fueling becomes increasingly difficult. 38/49

39 Table 7-1 Temperature - Pressure Graph for LNG As a rule of thumb, to completely avoid boil-off emission into the atmosphere even with limited sales volumes in the 50t 180 t/year range, the service stations needs to be equipped with active cooling, for example via N2 based heat exchanger, or product swap. These values indicate a commercially not viable site and are typical for the very early startup period when the station fuels less than 5 trucks/day. L-CNG technology contributes positively to temperature management since it allows to compress the natural gas taken off the truck tank into the high pressure CNG buffer tank. On the other hand the repeated cooling down of the reciprocating LNG pump that feeds LNG into the high pressure vaporizer will put significant heat into the LNG storage tank. In case of very intermittent pump use the overall contribution to heat balance appears to be negative. In conclusion, a very limited sales volume will create boil off gas if no countermeasures are taken. To take heat out of the storage tank the above mentioned partial swap of old LNG with a mix of old and fresh product ensures satisfactory fueling performance and can avoid boil off generation completely. Once the LNG station develops commercially it becomes necessary to saturate the LNG to the lower temperature limit for the IVECO trucks. The demand for unsaturated LNG in the Blue Med Corridor is still very limited or zero. Especially the Piacenza station occasionally had to delay fuellings due to low LNG temperature. Not being provided with an on-line vaporizer in the loading line some adaptations of the plant logic where necessary to bring the LNG rapidly to the level required by IVECO trucks. The storage tanks vertical or horizontal positioning is quite influential on thermal management. Horizontal tanks generate a relatively much larger surface in respect of the product volume especially when nearly empty. This causes a faster rise in temperature. Generally speaking, due to thermal reasons and better pump suction head, the vertical storage tank installation appears clearly preferable. 39/49

40 In this context the question of LNG rollover, which refers to a rapid vapour release from a storage tank caused by LNG stratification which potentially might overwhelm the excess pressure relief system, needs to be taken into account. The very small volume of the service station tanks, which in the Blue Med Corridor is always below 100 m 3, evidently makes the stirring during storage tank refilling so effective that it inhibits stratification. There is no evidence of weathering, which refers to the creation of a denser layer of LNG caused by partial evaporation of lighter gases (no dedicated instrumentation to detect stratification is implemented). In thermal management, regarding boil-off avoidance, experience shows that emergency pressure relief valves are designed to open at a precise threshold but they do not necessarily close immediately once the pressure descends below their point of intervention. Should warm LNG determine the intervention of the truck tank emergency pressure valve the complete release of the tanks content is possible. A safe temperature margin has to be maintained prior to fueling. LNG spillage normally do not occur and is most likely caused by defective gaskets or imprecise junction between hoses, for example during weight and measurements verification. Sufficient spare parts availability on site resolves the issue effectively. The LNG emissions into the atmosphere during nozzle disconnect may be addressed in the context of a nozzle redesign with a smaller chamber between nozzle shutoff valve and truck tank inlet. 7.4 Availability of LNG and L-CNG The traditional service station for heavy transport is nearly always equipped with 4 to 6 fuel dispensers and a total of nozzles with at least 8 12 for Diesel. Components like dispensers are comparatively cheap and operate as long there is fuel is in the storage tank. This provides plenty of redundancy for the customer who in any case could just fuel at a different station a short distance away. The LNG service station in the MED corridor typically has a single LNG dispenser with single nozzle and hose. The nozzle head gasket and the LNG hose are consumables with limited lifespan when compared to equipment for diesel fuel, generating two especially critical single point of failures. The obvious solution is to install at least two LNG dispensers or a single dispenser with double hose and nozzle where the sales volume justifies the extra investment. The LNG service station is relatively complex with expensive components. It relies either on a submerged LNG pump or a sophisticated storage tank pressure management to generate the necessary prevalence for fueling. A partial list pf critical items that might cause impossibility to fuel are process air compressor, process valves, electric control and safety equipment and sensors (temperature, pressure and methane) each of which constitutes a single point of failure. Generally the higher technical complexity of the LNG service station will require a new approach to maintenance, e.g. preventive maintenance, a dedicated fast intervention channel and access to remote monitoring. 40/49

41 At the level of station technical layout the weak spots require a series of generally cost-efficient technical provisions like e.g. air compressors with automated tank bleeding for water removal, air dryer and filter. Availability is particularly critical since LNG stations in the corridor typically constitute a local monopoly and the prevailing number of trucks are LNG-only. Every interruption of LNG dispensing at the station forces the logistics companies to provide Diesel fueled tractors on very short notice. This is an obstacle in reaching the 5% threshold of LNG powered trucks since larger numbers of tractors cannot be procured on short notice. The growing number of LNG stations will create the redundancy that solves the issue, probably in a 24 month timeframe. Supply terminal performance is another determining factor for LNG availability, especially in Italy. Due to the absence of LNG deep water terminals with truck loading capabilities any interruption in road transport or a terminal shutdown at Fos Tonkin will cause a general supply emergency. The necessary trailer-truck capacity to supply Italy from Barcelona in this case nearly doubles which at the actual volumes is not sustainable for more than a couple of days. CNG fueling is less critical than LNG due to the availability of alternative fueling sources and the possibility to use gasoline. L-CNG is generated pressurizing the LNG to about Mpa using a reciprocating piston pump and a vaporizer. When the pump suction head is sufficient the equipment is very reliable, preventive maintenance is possible. An intervention will cause a 4h fueling stop in case of a single reciprocating pump. 7.5 Saturated and unsaturated LNG The latest LNG engine development may require unsaturated LNG with benefits in energy density in the 10 15% range and better fuel efficiency. No truck with this technology is today active in the MED corridor and all stations are designed for saturated LNG fueling with a minimum temperature of about -137 C. Modifying the corridor LNG stations layout for fueling with unsaturated LNG will require some modifications of station equipment. The limited range increase due to lower LNG temperature in the truck tank would be achievable actually only under exceptional conditions since the LNG temperature in the storage tank is already typically in the -125 C to -140 C range. 41/49

42 8 Station Location Until very recently (February 2017) the standard range for LNG-only trucks was limited to about 700 km with a maximum power of 330 hp. Due to these constraints the typical traffic, as made evident by the data, is the short haul logistics typical for supermarket supply. The trucks leaves daily from a logistic center and reenters after about 6 10 hours travel time, sometimes repeating trips twice a day with two drivers. The average fueling is in the range of kg indicating roundtrip distances of km. This generates a strong incentive to fuel either at the start or end of the trip with minimum deviation from the best route. This gives a strong advantage to LNG station situated close to a cluster of distribution centers as for example Piacenza. The new IVECO 400 hp truck with double tank option removes these limitations partially regarding power and completely regarding range. In the very near future the transport tasks requiring high power can be taken on with the new Volvo 460 hp LNG truck. The optimal LNG station location will probably remain very close to the logistic centers, accessible through sufficiently wide roads possibly form both directions of the motorway nearby. 42/49

43 9 Renewable LNG LNG can be generated from fossil natural gas along the same principles as for petroleum production. The liquefaction takes place at the wellhead with cheap energy provided directly from the well itself using a compressor based refrigeration cycle. As for any thermal plant size is important for efficiency. Another option for LNG generation is liquefying biogas created by anaerobic digestions from a variety of feedstocks. The feedstock largely determines the result of the digestion and does not have to be waste. Particularly interesting is animal slurry from intensive pig or cattle farming where the feedstock would require expensive treatment. The result of digestion is biogas, heat and fertilizer. Nearly any bio-degradable plant or animal matter is suitable as feedstock. Wood and other lignin containing materials will slow the process. The yield varies widely in function of the energy left in the feedstock, dry matter content, digesting time and purity. Typical feedstocks are waste from food, agricultural residues, crops and sewage sludge. Digesting offsets methane emissions that would otherwise be created by natural decomposition. Typical yields are: Feedstock Biogas Yield (m3/t) Feedstock Biogas Yield (m3/t) Cattle slurry (10% DM) Potatoes Pig slurry (8% DM) Rye grain Poultry (20% DM) Clover grass Grass silage (28% DM) Sorghum Whole wheat crop 185 (33% DM) Grass Maize silage (33% DM) Red clover Maize grain 560 (80% DM) Jerusalem artichoke Crude glycerine (80% DM) Turnip 314 Wheat grain 610 (85% DM) Rhubarb Rape meal 620 (90% DM) Triticale Fats up to 1200 Oilseed rape /49

44 Nettle Canary grass Sunflower Alfalfa Miscanthus Clover Flax 212 Barley Sudan grass Hemp Sugar beet Wheat grain Kale Peas 390 Straw Ryegrass Oats grain Leaves Chaff Fodder beet Table 2 Yield from feedstocks ( The large quantities of feedstock involved, the type of equipment and the limited but existing emission of odours from a digester determine an installation in a rural context. The biogas is generally used for cogeneration of electrical energy and heat via internal combustion engine. Only in the Lombardy Region of Italy there are more than 90 digesters with a capacity in the range from kWe. 9.2 From Biogas to Bio-LNG - Infrastructure The process of creating Bio-LNG involves the three steps of biogas purification, liquefaction of the biomethane and storage and truck-loading of the LNG. It is open today how best to allocate the infrastructure. All three process steps would benefit considerably in technological and cost efficiency from larger scale. The options are either a centralized digesting plant of considerable scale and subsequent need for high volume transport of potentially noxious feedstock or decentralized digesting and small scale transport of the biogas. The second option would require either a high pressure compressor at the digester site for transport in trucks or a pipeline to a purification and liquefaction plant. Also the cost of Bio-LNG must be competitive with the fossil kind. We assume in the further considerations that technological deflation will work in favor of decentralized equipment for Bio-LNG 44/49

45 production based on existing digesters. The immediate advantages are availability of LNG for CO2 neutral farming, distributed LNG fueling infrastructure and limited extra transport load on public roads. 9.3 Purification Biogas from anaerobic digestion consists mainly of CH 4 and CO 2 and a series of trace components which largely depend on the feedstock. Upgrading to bio-methane for use in road transport involves removing the CO2, cleaning away the trace components and upgrading the calorific energy content to the range used in internal combustion vehicles. Particularly critical are the siloxanes which will negatively impact the engine life and need to be removed entirely. The liquefaction than has the advantage of a cost-effective removal of all trace components that will solidify before -162 C. 9.4 Liquefaction The options for small scale liquefaction are either compressor- or liquid nitrogen based. The compressor based solution works like any standard liquefaction plant only on smaller scale. The equipment s complexity impacts reliability and energy costs are high. Few suppliers are available. The liquid nitrogen based process consists essentially of two cryogenic storage tanks for liquid nitrogen and LNG, a heat exchanger and some pumps. It requires little energy, is reliable and technologically simple. Its drawback is the cost of the liquid nitrogen which makes it competitive only for smaller plants unless excess liquid nitrogen is cheaply available from other processes. The size limit for nitrogen based liquefaction is around 3,000 t/year. As a third alternative it would be possible to transport the purified bio-methane in the existing natural gas pipeline network and liquefy it centrally, introducing a system similar to the commercialization of renewable electrical energy. The mayor hurdle in this case is the cost of the connection to the pipeline and the about 15 month of time the procedure takes. In Italy, as of today, only one digester is connected to the grid pipeline. In France the grid connection is more widely used. 45/49

46 10 Outlook and suggestions LNG based transport today does not command a price premium in the market but will be the preferred solution at parity of cost. The key to LNG s future successful development is cost reduction through fiscal policy, technological development and decreasing commercial uncertainty Fiscal policy LNG in the Blue Corridors project has shown a particular strong performance where the fiscal policies, regarding the relative price of LNG versus Diesel. This is the case in Italy. In Germany, where the taxation on Diesel is much lighter, LNG has difficulties to gain a foothold in the market. The trend in fiscal policies can be considered in general favorable towards LNG when confronted with Diesel fuel LNG technological trends Technology transfer from the bus to the truck Natural gas has become the standard fuel for buses used in public transport in cities since at least ten years, substituting Diesel fuel. The availability of the NG engine developed from the bus made the 2014 IVECO 330 hp LNG truck possible. This truck was a first product available from an OEM that fit into the requirements of the larger logistics companies and launched the success story of LNG we see today Engine and LNG vehicle tank technology LNG engines in Europe until quite recently were limited in numbers which made dedicated technological development commercially not viable and kept components cost high. The bus market was not sufficient to launch the development of dedicated technological solutions. The actual surge in the LNG truck market already solves this issue, especially regarding High Pressure Direct Injection, which has the potential for significantly higher engine efficiency. The actual rising production numbers will bring down cost and potentially could significantly reduce the price gap with Diesel trucks. The same applies for the truck tank technology which has a cost similar to the engine Commercial LNG market maturity 46/49

47 The rising LNG fleet volume in the LNG Blue Med countries will create a more robust market for preowned LNG trucks, foster e redundant LNG service station market and create more terminal with the ability for truck loading especially in Italy. A downward development of cost can be expected Suggestions The time horizon for investment in LNG technology is about 5 years for logistics companies, 20 years for the fueling stations and even more for the deep water LNG terminals with truck loading capacity. The LNG technology has proven with LNG BC its practical feasibility and the environmental benefits are evident. To accelerate further the adoption of LNG in heavy transport a long-term reliable normative framework for LNG as a fuel for heavy transport in Europe may be the best support possible. 47/49

48 11 List of Tables Table 4-1 Distances Med-Blue Corridor Table 4-2 Blue Med Stations and Terminals (*Ravenna planned, others are operative) Table 3: LNG Stations Italy (source NGVA) Table 4: LNG Stations France (source NGVA) Table 5: Road freight transport by distance class, 2014; source: Eurostat (online data code: road_go_ta_dc) Table 7-1 Temperature - Pressure Graph for LNG Table 7 Yield from feedstocks ( /49

49 12 Project Partners 49/49