Increasing use of gas in Southwest Finland – filling station for heavy-duty vehicles to open in Lieto in the summer

  The gas filling station to open in Lieto will serve long-haul transport by providing low-emission liquefied natural gas (LNG) and biogas (LBG) as fuels. The station will open in the summer of 2020 at Eteläkaari 1 in the Avanti business and industrial area. The station is located is at a major long-haul transport hub on highway 10.

  The new gas filling station in Lieto together with the existing filling station in Turku will serve logistics customers and companies in Southwest Finland. For logistics company Kuljetus Harri Mikkola, which operates out of Oripää and Kaarina, the new filling station has allowed the company to place an order for its first LNG-fueled vehicle. Kuljetus Harri Mikkola operates contract runs for Lidl Finland and alternative fuels are a significant way for the company to reduce emissions and stand out from the competition.

“The initiative for a vehicle fueled cleaner energy came from our contractor, Lidl Finland. Since as a company we’ve always been interested in the latest innovations and responsible solutions in the industry, we were immediately excited by the idea. We got together to think over the various alternatives and in the end decided on LNG, since it’s perfect for driving long distances. The decision was also supported by the new gas filling station on highway 10, since the location is brilliant for our runs,” says Teemu Mikkola, who owns logistics company, Harri Mikkola Ky.

Gas is the solution to the challenges of emissions in heavy-duty transport

"The heavy-duty transport filling station being built in Lieto is part of our network of filling stations in the Nordic countries and adds to it in Finland while strengthening the possibilities for heavy-duty transport to fill up in Southwestern Finland. Liquefied natural gas and biogas are an environmentally aware solution that is in reach today to respond to the growing challenges posed by emissions in heavy-duty transport. In addition to which using gas can deliver savings in fuel costs. The choice can also be a positive statement to customers and consumers and make a company stand out from the competition,” says Markus Kaarlela, Development Manager, Traffic, Gasum.

Demand for alternative fuels has grown at an incredible rate as companies pursue increasingly more environment-friendlier transport kilometers. Over the lifecycle of the fuel, liquefied natural gas can help to cut greenhouse gas emissions by around 20% compared to diesel and filling up with renewable biogas can achieve emissions reductions of up to 85%. Since biogas can utilize the same infrastructure as natural gas, the switch to biogas is both easy and cost effective.