Blue Energy Motors has unveiled India’s first LNG-fuelled green truck by launching a manufacturing plant at Chakan, Pune, on Friday. The facility was inaugurated by Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari. 

Blue Energy Motors’ trucks will be Liquified Natural Gas-fuelled, long-haul, heavy-duty trucks. Blue Energy Motors has already signed an agreement with FPT Industrial, the global powertrain brand of Iveco Group

The market entry of the LNG-fuelled trucks will start with introduction of 5528 4x2 tractor as the first model.

“Blue Energy Motors trucks have been designed and tested in accordance with demanding Indian transport industry’s duty cycles. Powered by FPT Industrial engines generating high torque, these trucks deliver best in class TCO and offer unmatched ride comfort and safety for the drivers for long hauls,” the company stated in a release.

“The FPT Industrial engine is one the most powerful natural gas engine in the market and is compatible with CNG, LNG and biomethane; it uses multipoint stoichiometric combustion to assure best-in-class fuel consumption and lower noise than diesel engines,” the statement added.

Speaking on the occasion, Gadkari said that LNG is the fuel of the future which is cost effective and economically viable. He added that these trucks will reduce logistic costs involved in transport.     

“It is a great alternative to petrol and diesel at a time when we import so much. With LNG, there will be savings and we will reduce our logistics cost by 16 per cent, and further bring it down to 10 per cent, which is our target. We are making LNG and CNG from biomass in Maharashtra, Punjab and Haryana. Within two years we will have more than 200 capacities in the country. Biofuel is the future and we have a huge potential for export. It’s essential for the economy. The prospects for the industry are great and I am excited about the future, as we move towards reducing pollution,” the Minister added.  

Anirudh Bhuwalka, CEO, Blue Energy Motors said: “India’s first LNG truck manufacturing facility in Chakan, Pune, which we inaugurated today, is our first step towards pioneering the green trucking revolution. We at Blue Energy Motors aim to decarbonise the environment by providing an immediate solution and breaking the barriers of economic returns”.

“We are pleased and proud that Blue Energy Motors has chosen us for this major evolution in Indian commercial transport,” said Sylvain Blaise, President of Iveco Group Powertrain Business Unit.

“This agreement is of the utmost importance for FPT Industrial, now and in the future, as we want our leading technologies to play a key role to support the ecological transition of one of the world’s largest vehicle markets,” Sylvain Blaise added.

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