New alliance set up to help fleets switch to economical LPG
Fleets and taxis could soon find making the switch from petrol and diesel models to LPG not only cost effective but better for their total carbon footprint thanks to a new Autogas Alliance.
The alliance, due to be launched in July, was formed after the success of new LPG vehicles being supplied into the taxi market.
An agreement with manufacturers will allow fleets to order petrol vehicles that have the capability to be converted to LPG, and thanks to economies of scale, provide an extremely attractive package for any small to large fleet buyer, thereby increasing the savings.
If fleets have their own LPG tank installed on site, the cost could drop to 67.5p/l including VAT and fuel duty, according to John Burke of Autogas Network. The alliance has already run a trial of the system with Vauxhall in the UK’s taxi market, and so far has realised a return of 9.1p/mile for converted LPG vehicles as against 12.6p/mile for diesel and 17.1p/mile for petrol.
Rob Breuilly, managing director of the alliance’s vehicle supply arm, said: “Fleet operators will have to consider LPG as a cost effective and viable option to petrol and diesel vehicles. As a part of the alliance’s offer, there is also the ability to install gas tanks on customer sites which allows the fleet operator to reduce his fuel and servicing costs even further.”
There are thought to be around 150,000 LPG vehicles on UK roads, while Europe boasts more than seven million, selling around 4,000 units per week, this is due to some European governments still subsidising the costs of the conversion.
There are 1,400 LPG filling stations currently in the UK, and that figure is rapidly rising as the interest from the major supermarket chains grows to install gas pumps in all their stations. It would seem the UK has been slow to embrace this technology, following the government withdrawal of subsidies, something that Burke puts down to “our nervous approach to anything new”.
“Here in the UK we are so far behind Europe when it comes to taking up LPG and I think it’s about time we re-appraised the advances made in LPG technology,” he said.
The Alliance expects to sell 3,000-4,000 vehicles a year within the first three years and has already placed substantial forward orders. Lead time is expected to be about eight weeks depending on the size of the order.
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