With Gazprom's ambitious plans and industry leadership, the future of CNG and LNG as viable and eco-friendly alternatives in Russia appears promising. Gazprom Group, the leading energy company in Russia, hosted a presentation on the remarkable advancements in the country's gas motor fuel market. The presentation, held at the one-day International Gas Roundtable in Johannesburg in collaboration with the African Energy Chamber (http://www.EnergyChamber.org), featured speakers, Mr. Alexander Mikhailov, Deputy Head of Directorate and Head of Division at Gazprom, and Mr. Nikolay Lovygin, Deputy Director General and Chief Engineer at Gazprom Helium Service.

With increasing global focus on sustainable energy solutions, the utilization of natural gas as a cleaner alternative to conventional fuels has gained significant momentum worldwide. Gazprom’s presentation shed light on the extensive progress made in the adoption and expansion of compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) as motor fuels in Russia.

Mikhailov opened the presentation by providing an overview of Gazprom's strategic initiatives in the gas motor fuel sector. He emphasized the company's commitment to reducing emissions and promoting environmental sustainability through the use of natural gas as a transport fuel.

“It is environmentally friendly, when we use methane, we exclude lead and sulphur which are harmful, as well and CO₂ emissions. [Methane] is also classified as a class 4 safety fuel,” said Mikhailov.

Additionally, Mikhailov discussed the substantial investments made by Gazprom in infrastructure development, including CNG and LNG filling stations across Russia, to support the growth of the market.

“Gazprom has already been using locomotives [powered by] CNG and we are currently developing this field further. We will also start the transition of fueling Russian railways. We are actively working to produce 12 tons capacity of truck tractors,” he said.

Following Mikhailov, Nikolay Lovygin took the stage to elaborate on the technical aspects of Gazprom's advancements in the gas motor fuel market.

Highlighting the company’s operations, “Gazprom Helium Service is the only company that works exclusively with cryogenic gas liquefaction and transportation technologies. Our enterprise works on logistics, transportation, and preparatory works,” he stated.

“We also produce liquid nitrogen and oxygen. We have our own CNG/LNG production unit used to power our own fleet of vehicles. Additionally, we have an LNG plant at our enterprise, and the unit works in full cycle and the need of CNG is 3,000 tons per year, and we fully cover this need.”

The company is also expanding their operations in the construction of more service stations and LNG plants in different parts of the country.

“Taking into account the experience of our company in terms of the implementation of different assets in the construction of CNG, we have a different approach to the construction of plants. We have started on the construction of plants in other regions, and this year, we are producing CNG suitable for filling trucks and vehicles of different kinds,” concluded Lovygin.

As Gazprom continues to spearhead the development of the gas motor fuel market in Russia, the company’s achievements serve as a testament to its commitment to environmental stewardship, energy diversification, and sustainable development in the transportation sector.