Renewable biomethane for transport supplier CNG Fuels has unveiled its tenth refuelling station, as demand for low-carbon fuel continues to grow across the UK.
Retailers including Aldi, Lidl, and Waitrose – as well as manufacturers such as Warburtons – are using biomethane to power their fleets, seeing it as a greener alternative to fossil fuels.
Aldi is the latest major brand to adopt bio-CNG vehicles, which it expects will help it cut emissions and save long-term fuel costs.
The latest station to open is in the Normanton Industrial Estate in Castleford, which can refuel 500 HGVs per day. The increase in biomethane facilities comes as the government moves ahead with its plans to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel HGVs from 2040.
CNG Fuels claims the renewable biomethane, which is derived from food waste and manure, is the lowest carbon and most cost-effective alternative fuel to diesel available to HGVs today.
Philip Fjeld, CEO of CNG Fuels, said: “Fleet operators around the world are urgently seeking ways to cut emissions from their fleets.
“In the UK, fleet operators can do so today by adopting biomethane. Our fast-growing network of refuelling infrastructure has made biomethane more accessible than ever before, and fleets – ranging from local hauliers through to major household brands – are dramatically cutting emissions every day.”
Liz Fox, national corporate responsibility director for Aldi UK, said adopting bio-CNG HGVs is “another step forward in our plans to cut emissions from our UK fleets”.
She added: “CNG Fuels’ latest station in Castleford opens the door to major transport networks into the north-east, and their growing network will only continue to extend the number of low-carbon deliveries that we can make across the country every day.”
CNG Fuels plans to have 20 large public access biomethane stations in operation by the end of 2023, with sites in Newton Aycliffe and Corby entering the construction phase at the end of last month.
In 2021, the company announced it plans to host hydrogen fuel trials across its sites to ensure stations are ready to support a multi-fuel future as different technologies develop and become commercially viable. The first hydrogen trials are due to begin this year.
Read more about greener retailing practices at Aldi
[Image credit: CNG Fuels]
