Gasum Annual Report 2010

Sivu: 1 Sivu: 2 Sivu: 3 Sivu: 4 Sivu: 5 Sivu: 6 Sivu: 7 Sivu: 8 Sivu: 9 Sivu: 10 Sivu: 11 Sivu: 12 Sivu: 13 Sivu: 14 Sivu: 15 Sivu: 16 Sivu: 17 Sivu: 18 Sivu: 19 Sivu: 20

Sivu: 21

TRANSPORT SERVICES Gasum has 14 NGV ﬁlling stations, with 2 new stations opened in 2010. The price of CNG at ﬁlling stations averaged €1.10/kg, while the comparative price per litre compared with petrol was €0.71. Natural gas is the least expensive transport fuel, including following the tax amendments that took effect at the beginning of 2011. Using natural gas to fuel urban public transport improves local air quality as gas use does not result in particulate emissions. Gasum sells compressed natural gas (CNG) for transport use at its ﬁlling stations. CNG is measured by mass in kilograms. Payments at ﬁlling stations are made using Gasum’s own GasCard charge card. Two new ﬁlling stations were opened during the year, one in Lohja and another in Friisilä, Espoo. Sites for ﬁlling stations are explored along routes with high trafﬁc volumes and, where possible, stations are constructed in conjunction with traditional ﬁlling stations. Decisions on ﬁlling station sites are based on studies into local customer potential in terms of public transport, enterprises, such as transport companies, and cars. Filling solutions can also be tailored for corporate customers. In the initial stage Gasum is constructing ﬁlling stations within the area covered by the natural gas network. In future it is possible to expand the station network beyond this area by utilising liqueﬁed natural gas (LNG) in the logistics. The transport use of natural gas began in Finland in 1996, which is when Tammelundin liikenne Oy introduced the ﬁrst natural gas fuelled buses. The ﬁrst − and by now closed-down − ﬁlling station was located in Pirkkola, Helsinki. The number of public NGV ﬁlling stations operational in Finland in 2010 was 17, comprising 14 Gasum stations, stations operated by Haminan Energia and St1 in Hamina, St1 and Mäntsälän Sähkö in Mäntsälä and the biogas ﬁlling station of Metener Oy in Laukaa. ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS AND LOW PRICE ATTRACTING INTEREST Interest in the use of natural gas as a vehicle fuel has increased due to environmental reasons and low fuel price. Carbon dioxide emissions from NGVs are around 25% below those of corresponding petroldriven vehicles, while the advantage over diesel vehicles is that NGVs do not cause particulate emissions, which are a major factor reducing local air quality. NGVs can also be used beyond the ﬁlling station catchment area as almost all gas-fuelled cars and vans are bifuel vehicles, which means they can run on either petrol or gas. The driving range depends on the model, with current NGVs achieving a range of between 300km and 500km on gas. MARKET DEVELOPMENT HAMPERED BY TAX DEBATE The rate of increase in the number of NGVs slowed down in 2010 on the year before because consumers were waiting for tax decisions regarding new transport fuels. By year-end 2010, Gasum had around 1,000 GasCard customers. The number of customers’ vehicles increased by around 20%, but the sales volume of CNG decreased by around 5% due to a reduction in the use of depot ﬁlling stations.The highest sales volumes among public ﬁlling stations were seen in Ruskeasuo, Helsinki,Tampere and Kouvola. In force since the beginning of 2011, the new energy tax increased the price of CNG but CNG still maintained its relative competitive advantage against liquid fuels. A legislative proposal has been submitted for a propelling force tax to be introduced for NGVs in 2013 at the earliest, with the level imposed on NGVs, however, being lower than that on diesel vehicles. Gasum is cooperating closely with NGV sales and import organisations to promote NGVs. Events have been organised to present them to groups including professional motorists. Gasum has also set up a Facebook fan page themed on cleaner transport to provide information and news about NGVs. Gasum also publishes an e-newsletter on the topic.The calculator available on the Gasum website can be used to compare the cost of using natural gas, petrol or diesel for various user proﬁles. BIOGAS AS A TRANSPORT FUEL According to an expert estimate by MTT Agrifood Research Finland, Finnish potential for the production of biogas for use as a transport fuel amounts to 2–3 TWh from waste and manure-based materials and 6 TWh from ﬁeld energy without compromising food and feed production. Major opportunities are also available in the production of bio-synthetic natural gas. From the overall perspective it would be sensible to utilise biogas resources in transport as this helps achieve a relatively higher rate of renewable fractions than in uses such as electricity generation. Finland has adopted a national objective of covering 20% of transport fuel consumption with renewable energies. Using biogas as a transport fuel would help achieve a considerable share of this. When the Finnish Parliament was considering a production subsidy model for electricity generated using renewable sources of energy, Gasum proposed that the use of biogas should be treated equally in transport and power generation alike. 19

Sivu: 21 Sivu: 22 Sivu: 23 Sivu: 24 Sivu: 25 Sivu: 26 Sivu: 27 Sivu: 28 Sivu: 29 Sivu: 30 Sivu: 31 Sivu: 32 Sivu: 33 Sivu: 34 Sivu: 35 Sivu: 36 Sivu: 37 Sivu: 38 Sivu: 39 Sivu: 40 Sivu: 41 Sivu: 42 Sivu: 43 Sivu: 44 Sivu: 45 Sivu: 46 Sivu: 47 Sivu: 48 Sivu: 49 Sivu: 50 Sivu: 51 Sivu: 52 Sivu: 53 Sivu: 54 Sivu: 55 Sivu: 56