NGV Global

Australia

Wesfarmers Kleenheat Launches EVOL LNG brand

Kleenheat Gas, a business unit of Wesfarmers Energy and Australian pioneer in the field of alternative fuels, has stepped up its presence in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) arena, commissioning a $137 million production and refuelling plant in Western Australia and launching a dedicated brand to facilitate LNG use in heavy vehicles. In a press release the company said the search for a diesel fuel alternative able to power a wide range of heavy vehicles and large industrial engines is a response to Australia’s increasing dependence on imported fuels, combined with the impact on the national balance of payments and the increasingly volatile global oil price.

Marketed under the ‘EVOL LNG’ brand, Kleenheat Gas currently supplies LNG and supporting refuelling facilities to approximately 200 trucks in Western Australia and Victoria with plans afoot to further expand into New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia.

Major fleets already using LNG with great success include the Murray Goulburn Co-Operative (Devondale brand of milk products), Sands Fridge Lines, Mitchell Corporation, McColls, Cleanaway, SITA Environmental Solutions, Cootes and a growing internal fleet within Kleenheat Gas.

The EVOL LNG team works closely with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and specialist LNG engine conversion companies to ensure the fuel delivers the best operational and environmental outcomes for its customers.

“To be successful in this emerging industry you need to make the fuel transition as easy as possible by engaging management and fleet drivers,” said Brad Lowson, Kleenheat Gas’ LNG Manager. He continued, “We do a lot more than simply supplying the fuel – we supply the LNG refueller network, provide driver and workshop training, site audits and facilitate the entire conversion process. Further, we have trucking experts embedded within our team.”

New LNG Plant Already Operational

In Western Australia, the recent official opening of Wesfarmers Energy’s 175 tonne-per-day Kwinana plant (commissioned in September 2008) is part of the company’s commitment to increasing national refuelling infrastructure. The 175 tonnes per day production capacity of this new LNG plant is equivalent to approximately 250,000 litres of diesel per day.

Wesfarmers Energy Managing Director, Tim Bult said at the opening, “Recent Australian Government sponsored testing of an ADR80/02 15-Litre engine, showed that it produced 25 per cent less greenhouse gas emissions (CO2-e) than the equivalent diesel engine. Air quality is also improved through the use of LNG fuel, with a significant reduction in harmful particulate matter (PM) and nitrous oxide emissions.”

“LNG should become an essential fuel within the overall energy mix in Australia and would play a key role in reducing carbon pollution emissions,” said Bult.

The plant currently supports approximately 130 heavy-duty vehicles, a significant road tanker distribution fleet, two remote power stations with onsite LNG storage and a large industrial customer.

The Advantages of LNG

Being 600 times the density of natural gas and three times the density of compressed natural gas (CNG), LNG is the most efficient method of transporting and storing gas. LNG is vapourised or ‘reconverted’ back to its natural gas state when required for use in applications such as industrial applications, power generation, heating and transport.

Wesfarmers says LNG fuel delivers the best outcomes for companies operating long haul fleets over medium to large distances, including lower carbon emissions.When used in modern truck engines, LNG emits significantly less particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxides when compared to diesel engines. Furthermore, internal testing by various manufacturers globally has proven that the current generation of gas-powered engines exceed the highest environmental requirements (EURO V and Japanese New Long Term 05) making LNG engines some of the cleanest internal combustion power plants available.

Current LNG Technology

With increased political and public pressure on the transport industry to reduce its carbon footprint, several manufacturers are in the process of introducing factory installed, high powered heavy duty LNG engines and fuel systems.

For example, Kenworth Australia, a division of PACCAR, has commenced production of LNG trucks with the road train specification T908 available to order now, and the popular B-Double K108 model and T408SAR cab chassis will be available later in the year. Additional models are then expected to follow.

Derived from the Cummins ISX diesel engine, Canadian based LNG engine company, Westport Innovation Inc. offers comparable horsepower, torque and efficiency from its LNG engine, with ratings of up to 1850 lb-ft of torque and 580 peak horsepower.