Driving profitability with Scania natural gas trucks

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Scania Group Press Release  /  August 29, 2019

Valencia-based Delgo Transport specialises in refrigerated transports at both a national and international level. Today, just a year after acquiring their first liquefied natural gas truck, half of the company’s fleet of 110 trucks runs on LNG, and, so far, Managing Director Félix González likes what he sees.

“When we found out Scania made gas trucks, 80 percent of the decision was made,” he says. “And the results we’ve had have been better than what we had on paper. Better consumption levels, and fewer emissions of course.”

The trucks also appeal to customers looking for alternative fuel transports, helping to drive Delgo’s quick adoption of such a large LNG fleet. “When we did some analysis, we thought it was riskier to not do anything,” he says. Delgo’s LNG trucks are used mostly for national and distribution transport for several large supermarket chains in Spain.

In addition to investing in a renewed LNG fleet, Delgo has also installed its own LNG filling station at its main facility in Valencia, a strategic decision that should, in the long run, save both time and money. The company is also taking advantage of a rapidly growing network of LNG filling stations around Spain.

While the most obvious difference for drivers is the refuelling procedure, driver Salvador Sultan Blasco says the new LNG trucks haven’t changed his work much. “My first impressions are good ones. It feels a bit better because the engine is very smooth,” he explains. “You don’t hear a typical diesel engine noise, but driving it is the same.”

Drivers have also benefitted from driver training specifically for the LNG trucks, which have had a measurable impact on fuel consumption. “The Barcelona truck fleet started using gas trucks last July,” explains Fleet Manager Rafa Gimeno Ros. “And after training, consumption was reduced by two kilograms per hundred kilometres.” (LNG consumption is typically measured in kilograms, which are roughly equivalent to a litre of diesel.)

For Gonzaléz, LNG trucks are the common-sense alternative to diesel. “I don’t think it’s the final step towards zero emissions, but it’s a model that’s here to stay,” he says.

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