Less than seven months later, GasNet and Kleenheat successfully commissioned the facility and supplied its first fill of LNG to a Kleenheat road tanker. The commissioning marked the beginning of the first commercial LNG Truck Loading Facility of its kind in Australia.

Kleenheat has secured a long term gas supply agreement with AGL and has also already signed a major customer in Victoria with a fleet of over 100 heavy duty long haul vehicles. At this stage 10 trucks have already been converted with a further 30 to be converted over the next 12 months. The expectation is to convert the entire fleet to LNG.

LNG is a commercially viable and environmentally friendly alternative to diesel. It provides a significant reduction in greenhouse gases, engine emissions and noise levels. The stable supply price of LNG is also a major advantage for transport operators because, unlike diesel, it is not linked to the international oil price or foreign exchange rates.

Both GasNet and Kleenheat believe LNG is an innovative fuel for companies throughout Australia and both are pleased to now be in a position to provide this quality product. LNG as an alternative fuel source for vehicles is not new and is gaining increasing acceptance throughout Europe and the United States of America. In time it has the potential to become the fuel of choice for the heavy transport industry such as semi-trailers, transit buses and garbage trucks.

Article continues below…

In addition, LNG can be used to provide natural gas for new and existing gas reticulation systems in remote areas throughout Victoria and the Australian east coast.

The GasNet/Kleenheat LNG Truck Loading Facility is the result of nearly two years of negotiation between the companies and represents an exciting new opportunity for both companies to capitalise on their core skills and to bring Australia in line with alternate fuel applications currently available in other parts of the world.

GasNet and Kleenheat are well matched, with GasNet’s 20 plus years of experience in LNG and Kleenheat Gas being a major distributor of gaseous fuels in Australia with an operating history of over 50 years. For the last three years Kleenheat has successfully operated an LNG plant and associated infrastructure in Western Australia, providing LNG to the heavy-duty vehicle industry.

With the current record oil prices translating into record fuel prices at the pump, Australia’s vast natural gas resources and the growing awareness of the importance in reducing vehicle emissions, GasNet and Kleenheat are both confident that LNG will gain a strong market position as an alternate fuel source in the transport industry.