Germany’s Liqvis, a unit of energy firm Uniper, and compatriot rail logistics firm VTG have completed test deliveries of LNG by rail from Brunsbüttel to Ingolstadt.
VTG said in a statement on Monday the duo has teamed up with Brunsbüttel Ports to complete initial tests involving the transportation by rail of LNG in specially developed tank wagons.
Chart Ferox, a unit of Chart, provided technical support for filling on the premises of Brunsbüttel Ports. The partners then transported LNG by rail for about 800 kilometers to Uniper’s power plant in Ingolstadt, the statement said.
LNG filling station operator Liqvis is looking into using rail as a “safe, cost-effective, and ecologically sound way” to deliver LNG to its network of filling stations.
“The ability to move larger volumes in a single batch by rail reduces transport emissions while taking heavy traffic off the roads,” the statement said.
VTG has previously collaborated with Chart Ferox to develop a tank wagon that can “bypass shipping routes, road haulage and the pipeline network to transport LNG across Europe.”
In addition, Brunsbüttel Ports, whose port facility is located at the mouth of the Elbe River, has already handled the first filling of VTG’s tank wagon with LNG back in April 2016, VTG said.
The port also now regularly hosts LNG bunkering operations via the truck-to-ship method.
