Ten thousand new NGVs in Germany in 2015

© erdgas mobilWill this happen 10000 times more in 2015 than in 2014?

Across entire 2014 as many as 8195 new NGVs were registered in Germany, including 621 in December alone. Compared to the previous year, this means a growth in sales by 1,8%. Most vehicles running on methane in Germany are passenger cars and light- to medium-duty vans, although there's also a fleet of 1700 CNG-powered city buses, which is Europe's third largest one (after those in France and Italy).

According to estimates, monthly sales of natural gas as motor fuel in Germany is 18 million m³. Impressive as the figure may seem, it only accounts for 0,36% of all motor fuels sold in that country every month.

Dr Timm Kehler, managing director at erdgas mobil, estimates that NGV sales in Germany in 2015 will exceed 10 thousand examples. Why should they? One factor is the 2020 climate protection program undertaken by the German government. It promises to retain tax breaks for natural gas and biomethane used for transport purposes.

The above political initiative is definitely an important one since it provides the CNG sector with appropriate conditions for growth. Besides, the number of available NGVs keeps growing and this helps, too – the more different car models on offer, the more people are willing to make the switch from conventional fuels to methane.