At the site of its Köhlbrandhöft treatment plant, Hamburg Wasser (Hamburg Water) has presented what it says is Germany’s first and largest corporate vehicle fleet fueled with biomethane from the sewage treatment process. The fuel for the 120 cars, made up of Opel Combo and VW Caddy vehicles, is produced by the municipal enterprise itself, using Hamburg wastewater as a renewable source. Hamburg Wasser gas vehicles are thus CO2-neutral.
Sewage sludge is treated in digesters to harvest the gas, which in turn is processed into environmentally friendly biogas and injected into the Hamburg gas grid . Around 19 million kilowatt hours will be produced in 2012. Six percent is required for the operation of the gas fleet.
The biomethane-fuelled fleet travels under the slogan “Your waste is our driving force”, to draw attention to the sustainable use of biogas generated in wastewater treatment. Since October every 120 Opel Combo and VW Caddy in this unique look on the road.
(This article compiled using information from a Hamburg Wasser press release)
