USA, San Francisco
40 stakeholders met Tuesday this week in San Francisco for the largest
ever CVEF Technical Committee meeting, held jointly with
representatives of the IANGV Technical Committee. Fitting in well with
the CVEF conference theme, ‘Strategies for Sustainability’, the meeting
provided plenty of reasons to be optimistic about industry prospects,
not just in the US but throughout the world.
Meeting highlights included:
Acknowledgement of outgoing CVEF Technical Meeting Chairperson, Brian Stokes,
who has Chaired the Committee since 1996. Stokes is replaced on the
Committee by Mike Eaves, who is also President of the Californian NGV
Coalition.
Standards Update – always under development and revision, Hank
Seiff & Doug Horne (CVEF) provided a status update, noting in
particular that the NGV2 cylinder standard is currently the subject of
review, with tests on the effects of acid based wheel cleaners on
cylinders under consideration.
Hydrogen standards development are also taking considerable attention, with NGV standards often being used as a starting point.
Meeting delegates acknowledged the difficulties in coordinating
standards between States, a problem reflected throughout the world.
While many States are referencing specific standards, which are often
replaced at a later date, some States are addressing this problem by
writing legislation that refers to ‘the latest standard’. This is
expected to reduce the workload involved with keeping regulations
abreast with standards.
International Standards Harmonisation – Jeff Seisler, Executive
Director of ENGVA, outlined the status of standards harmonisation at
the global level. Requiring considerable consultation with stakeholders
the International Standards Organisation (ISO) and the United Nations,
the process is yielding results, the most recent being the adoption of
standard road signage for CNG as reported last week in NGV Global.
While the international standards are increasingly being adopted
by local authorities, at which point they become ‘codes, an ongoing
problem for the industry is that testing protocols for the standards
sometimes vary significantly from territory to territory. For companies
supplying products to international markets, this need to prove
standards compliance is adding considerable cost,which must ultimately
be absorbed by the end user. Delegates called for regulators to adopt
standard testing acceptance to reduce the need for retesting on a local
basis.
LNG Update – Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is increasing in
popularity as a fuel, not just for road transport but also for marine
applications. The planned construction of LNG import terminals in
various locations throughout the world is likely to increase
opportunities for LNG transport (See LNG wharf tractor featured in this
week’s issue of NGV Global), and also for CNG vehicles through the use of LCNG (Liquefied & Compressed Natural Gas) facilities.
Though there are currently no international standards relating to LNG
for transport, stakeholders are hopeful that US standards will be
adopted as the basis for ISO or UN standards.
On Board Diagnostics –Alex Lawson, IANGV Technical Committee Chair,
reports that compliance with OBD2 continues to be a problem for some
aftermarket conversion system providers. While many systems are able to
meet OBD2, many system manufacturers are unable to afford the estimated
$250,000 in testing and proving costs. State and Federal industry
association representatives said that lobbying will continue in this
area, with volume based exemptions being one avenue under consideration.
Biomethane – Arguably one of the most exciting areas of
development in the natural gas vehicle industry, Jeff Seisler &
Rich Kolodziej (US NGV Coalition President) provided a stimulating
assessment of biomethane potential in Europe, the US and elsewhere.
Sweden continues to lead the world in this area, with 45% of methane
for transport now derived from biogas, produced from decomposing
organic matter and purified to become biomethane. With renewable fuels
generating significant interest throughout the world, natural gas
vehicles are proving their diversity once again.
A Swedish well to wheels analysis of biomethane to be released in
coming weeks is expected to indicate a ‘negative global warming’
impact. This effectively means that natural gas vehicle owners using
biomethane could produce a ‘global cooling’ effect.
With decomposing matter to be found almost anywhere, Seisler noted the
significant impact that biomethane production could have on developing
countries, with little or no access to natural gas or traditional fuels.
Kolodziej also noted the revenue opportunities for farmers and
indicated that the US associations would lobby for biomethane
incentives to be included in upcoming Energy or Farming bills, expected
to be considered in 2006.
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