Asda to open up Avonmouth LNG refuelling station to other operators

Asda is to open its Avonmouth liquefied natural gas (LNG) station to third-party hauliers.

The announcement was made by the supermarket’s gas supplier, BOC, at the Multimodal Show opening today at Birmingham NEC.

Opened last year at its chilled DC in Avonmouth, near Bristol, Asda’s LNG station incorporates zero-loss refuelling technology, developed by BOC, which uses cryogenic cooling to ‘temperature-condition' the fuel just prior to dispensing.

The refuelling station supports the supermarket’s fleet of 52 dual-fuel Volvo trucks at the site and is the latest development in Asda's transport sustainability strategy, which includes a target to reduce emissions from its transport fleet by 60% (between 2005 and 2015).

Stuart Milligan, transport operations manager at Asda, said: "We have been really fortunate to be in a position where we are working with companies such as BOC and Volvo; using new technology to both reduce costs and our carbon footprint. We have a fantastic facility from BOC and it would be great to use it to support a wider LNG network."

BOC's technical team will be on hand at Multimodal together with representatives from Volvo, Diesel Gas and Asda to talk to visitors about LNG as a low-carbon vehicle fuel.

The gas supplier will also showcase its new mobile LNG refuelling unit, which it said offers a low-complexity, rapidly deployed dispensing option for fleets of between five and 30 vehicles. The system includes a liquid nitrogen temperature-conditioning system with vapour recovery to maximise efficiency and recover warm gases from the vehicle.

According to data supplied by The Gas Vehicle Hub - an initiative originally commissioned using Defra funding but now managed by Cenex and funded through the Knowledge Transfer Network - there are 16 LNG and 10 CNG (compressed natural gas) refuelling stations around the UK pinpointed on its interactive map.