OREANDA-NEWS.  Tripartite agreement on cooperation was signed between Astrakhan Oblast, OJSC KAMAZ and OOO EKTOOIL in Astrakhan to promote natural gas as a motor vehicle fuel.

The purpose of the agreement signed by Aleksandr Zhilkin, Governor of Astrakhan Oblast, Sergey Kogogin, Director General of OJSC KAMAZ, and Sergey Bolovin, Director General of OOO EKTOOIL, is to introduce new technologies aimed at improvement of traffic safety and environmental protection, reach global standards and ensure safety and comfort for passengers and drivers in Astrakhan Oblast. Under the agreement, it is planned to replace Euro 1, Euro 2, Euro 3 vehicles with Euro 4, Euro 5 ones and use eco-friendly NGVs. The parties decided to sign the trilateral agreement last April at the 3rd Astrakhan Interregional Industrial Forum Transport and Logistics-2014 where KAMAZ was represented by the company’s authorized regional dealer – OOO Volgotekhsnab-Kaspiy.

Aleksandr Zhilkin thanked KAMAZ and EKTOOIL for their interest in Astrakhan Oblast and said with certainty that the signed agreement would be a starting point for further cooperation, and also noted the environmental significance of the project, “Compressed gas is better than traditional fuels. It is cost-effective and pollution-free, less toxic. This is why the agreement we’ve recently signed is important and useful.” Besides, the governor suggested regional carriers that they should purchase new KAMAZ NGVs, thus promoting methane as a vehicle fuel.

According to Sergey Kogogin, Director General of KAMAZ, they’ve taken another step in order to develop the NGV sector in Russia. “More and more regions of this country want to use up-to-date vehicles. Today, Astrakhan Oblast has chosen economical and eco-friendly bottle-gas driven vehicles too,” Sergey Kogogin said. “KAMAZ’s task is now to provide the region with required vehicles. We have every resource and potential for this. Undoubtedly, not only automobile companies will profit reducing vehicle operation costs, but also all residents of Astrakhan Oblast will gain as a result because methane is the safest and greenest fuel whose usage will enable to reduce the quantity of emissions released to the atmosphere.”

Sergey Bolotin, Director General of OOO EKTOOIL, noted in his speech that his company and MInBank were the first in Astrakhan Oblast to start developing the network of mobile vehicle filling stations with the use of compressed gas. “To solve this task, we formed a plan approved by the mayor of Astrakhan to develop the network of multifuel filling stations placing them in different regions of the city,” Sergey Bolovin said. “The latest high-tech Korean, Italian and Russian gas equipment meeting all production safety standards will be used at each multi-fuel filling station. Each ready-built station is virtually a miniplant which purifies, dries, compresses fuel and fills vehicles with it.”

The use of natural gas as an engine fuel will have considerable social and economic advantages, reduce ecological costs in Astrakhan Oblast. The realization of the agreement is expected to increase the number of natural gas vehicles in Astrakhan Oblast, and also develop a service infrastructure for stable and effective functioning of such vehicles. In addition, the parties plan to jointly conduct presentations, technical conferences and events to promote gas vehicles.

KAMAZ intends to carry out operational tests of new models of bottle-gas driven vehicles in motor transport enterprises of Astrakhan Oblast and take part in the development of measures to modernize and renew passenger and cargo vehicles of Astrakhan Oblast. The feedback from the regional motor carriers on operation and design will be carefully studied in order to improve OJSC KAMAZ’s product quality. Special offers will be formed (also through the lease system) to supply companies of Astrakhan Oblast with KAMAZ vehicles and NEFAZ buses, and also original spare parts and units. Besides, the company organizes after-sales service and repair of KAMAZ bottle-gas driven vehicles and NEFAZ buses in certified service centers of OJSC KAMAZ.