The General Assembly of ECO-GATE agreed on specific innovative solutions that it will develop and implement at the 21 gas refuelling stations to be opened in Spain, France, Portugal and Germany under the European global action plan to develop sustainable mobility, an initiative being led by NEDGIA – the natural gas distribution company of the Gas Natural Fenosa group.
At the same session, ECO-GATE also approved its new logo and visual identity, which is already being used in its communication plan.
The various innovative solutions that ECO-GATE has decided to apply include the technological and operational innovations for undertaking improvements to liquefied natural gas (LNG) and compressed natural gas (CNG), fuel and logistics service infrastructures aimed at refuelling vehicles more efficiently and reducing the service station operating costs.
Real pilot tests will also be carried out with advanced solutions for converting vehicles to CNG and LNG in order to improve efficiency, reduce costs and improve features.
In addition, ECO-GATE will develop a universal payment platform and carry out real pilot tests on the use of renewable gas (hydrogen and biomethane) in the mobility sector.
In terms of the new logo approved by the General Assembly, the use of green and blue alludes to the sustainable energy represented by natural gas in the mobility sector. The symbol reflects the attributes of efficiency and environmental preservation of natural gas within a context marked by the need to reduce pollution and continue with decarbonisation.
25 companies in four countries make up ECO-GATE
Representatives from the 25 participating companies in Spain, Portugal, France and Germany attended the meeting of the General Assembly held at the NEDGIA headquarters in Madrid.
The European Union approved 10 million euros worth of funding for the ECO-GATE project, which will be managed and coordinated by NEDGIA, as the leader of a consortium made up by natural gas operators, technology and service providers, end users and marketing and promotion knowledge experts in Spain, Portugal, France and Germany.
The project involves the construction of 21 gas refuelling stations along the Atlantic and Mediterranean Corridors of the Spanish, French, German and Portuguese road networks. To this end, the funding provided to ECO-GATE will be shared between the four countries and will allow the development of gas refuelling stations in Barcelona, Girona, Burgos, Madrid, Murcia, Salamanca, Irún, Tordesillas, La Junquera, Cordoba and Cartagena, Lisbon, Setúbal, Maia, Aveiro, Tours and Heddesheim, among other cities.
About the ECO-GATE consortium
The European ECO-GATE global plan is one of the most ambitious on the conventional and renewable vehicular natural gas market, with the deployment of infrastructures throughout the Atlantic and Mediterranean Corridors via new technology and innovative solutions. ECO-GATE will make the rapid and mass deployment of this alternative fuel possible, thanks to a significant reduction in the unit cost, as well as a better understanding and more in-depth knowledge of customers’ needs.
ECO-GATE is made up of the following natural gas operators: NEDGIA, Enagás Transporte, Dourogás Natural, Endesa Energia, Galp Energia, Repsol, Gas Natural Europe, Inversora Melofe and Molgas Energía; the following technology and service providers: Cetil Dispensing Technology, Soltel It Solutions, Fundacion Cidaut, Evarm Innovacion, Universidade de Tras-Os-Montes e Alto Douro, Fundación Imdea Energía, Audigna, Ghenova Ingeniería and Madisa; the following end users: Correos and San José López; and the following marketing and promotion knowledge experts: Gasnam, Autoridad Portuaria de Gijón, Autoridad Portuaria de Huelva, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela and Soulman Insightful Thinking.
Besides ECO-GATE, the global action plan for the development of sustainable mobility in Europe has the support and interest of the Spanish Ministry of Industry and the Portuguese Direçao Geral de Energía e Geología, as well as the Spanish Gas Association (SEDIGAS) and the Natural & Bio Gas Vehicle Association (NGVA Europe).
About NEDGIA
NEDGIA is the natural gas distribution company of the Gas Natural Fenosa group in Spain, where it operates through 11 distribution companies. It currently has over 5.3 million supply points and over 51,000 kilometres of distribution network in more than 1,100 municipalities of Spain.
NEDGIA’s commitment to the future includes a decisive contribution from natural gas to improving air quality in Spanish cities, especially through the use of natural gas in the mobility sector; the development of infrastructure and the expansion of supply points to provide the public with easier access to natural gas; and a commitment to innovative solutions such as renewable gas.
Madrid, 12 June 2018.