LPG or CNG?

When I first wrote the articles in the winter of 2013 on CNG and LPG conversion to hybrid (Petrol/LPG) and NOT CNG which had started around the turn of the second millennium was all the trend and on the rise.  In an attempt to help both the economy and the environment the government decided to promote the use of these two supplementary gas fuels as they are cheaper, better for the engines and emit less harmful fumes than petrol or diesel.  The government introduced LPG for general public use and CNG for professional drivers i.e. taxis and public buses.  CNG was given to the professional drivers first to test out as it burns cleaner, is cheaper to buy and the reduced power output wouldn’t be as noticeable. As the professional drivers are on the road for longer hours this would help them reduce their CO2 footprint and save money on engine maintenance.

Filling stations however only added LPG to their stations because that was the fuel which was in most demand. CNG by contrast is still mainly only found at big public bus terminals.  As of October 2020 there are a total of only 14 CNG filling stations in Greece, 8 of which are in Attica. As a result of this policy hybrid taxis which were bought or converted to run on CNG & unleaded petrol have considerable difficulty refueling and thus prefer to run on the more readily available petrol which is available at all filling stations.  LPG (Autogas) on the other hand is now available at most filling stations.  

Poor government policy effectively killed CNG as a viable alternative fuel.  In 2020 the future of both these fuels seems likely to be superseded by a move to electric vehicles.

In the summer of 2020 the Greek government decided to promote EVs. It implemented from the start an incentive scheme for everyone (public and professional drivers) together. As a result of this proper incentive scheme for all, the sales of pure EVs saw a 620% increase from September 2019 to September 2020 from just 10 to 72 EVs.

To learn more about CNG & LPG click on the corresponding linked title text.