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Mattheeuws Eric and Fluxys inaugurate LNG filling station

LNG Industry,


Mattheeuws Eric Transport and Fluxys have inaugurated their LNG filling station on the premises of the haulage company in Veurne, Belgium.

Construction of the filling station began in February 2014 and was completed on schedule in September 2014. The station is supplied by tanker truck from the LNG terminal in Zeebrugge. Eric Mattheeuws Transport counts 26 LNG-powered trucks among its fleet and operates the facility, which is also accessible to other haulage companies.

For Fluxys the project is a pilot both in terms of engineering, technology, permitting and working out the economics of an LNG filling station. The experience gained during construction and the feedback from Eric Mattheeuws as haulage company and operator of the filling station is to yield recommendations and best practices to be used when building additional stations.

As the initiative by Mattheeuws Eric Transport and Fluxys not only includes the construction of an LNG filling station but also aims at producing a business case for the industry, as well as lessons to be learnt for public authorities, it will most likely receive co-financing by the European Commission. The project was selected for EU funding by an independent group of experts under the priority 'Measures to promote innovation and new technologies for transport infrastructure' of the TEN-T Annual Call 2013.


Mattheeuws Eric Transport and Fluxys have inaugurated their LNG filling station.

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Eric Mattheeuws, CEO of Mattheeuws Eric Transport, said: “The switchover to LNG means a drastic reduction in emissions and has considerable financial advantages as well. With Fluxys’ investment in the LNG filling station, the logistics supply chain is now complete. We have developed a unique partnership with Fluxys, Eni, Volvo Trucks and Romac Fuels to promote LNG as a valid alternative to bio-petroleum. I’m convinced that LNG is the future.”

Fluxys CEO Walter Peeraer said: "Fluxys wants to break the vicious circle in which the development of LNG infrastructure for transport finds itself: transporters are holding off on switching to LNG for lack of filling stations and too few filling stations are being built because the customer base is lacking. By joining forces with transporter Eric Mattheeuws we have lowered the threshold for other transporters to make the switch to LNG as a sustainable alternative to diesel.”

Stefano Campagnolo, Project Manager Transport at the Innovation and Networks Executive Agency (INEA) of the European Commission, said: “The European Commission supports LNG as an alternative fuel for trucks. The new LNG filling station will most likely be co-financed for 50% of the costs by the European Commission and is a project selected under the 2013 Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T) calls for proposals. We are particularly pleased with this initiative, which forms part of a broader project and will provide interesting lessons both for policy makers and the industry alike. It also comes at the right moment following the recently adopted directive on the deployment of alternative fuel infrastructure. This directive aims at making the European economy more resource-efficient and less dependent on oil.”

LNG filling station for trucks in Veurne from Michel Laasman on Vimeo.


Adapted from press release by Ted Monroe

Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/small-scale-lng/17102014/mattheeuws-eric-and-fluxys-inaugurate-lng-filling-station/

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