Natural Gas and Biomethane in the European Road Transport: The Latvian Perspective
Latvian Journal of Physics and Technical Sciences 2020
Juris Savickis, Laila Zemīte, Namejs Zeltiņš, Ilmārs Bode, Leo Jansons

The European Union (hereafter – the EU) takes a strong position in the global fight against climate changes by setting ambitious targets on reduction of greenhouse gas (hereafter – GHG) emissions. A binding target is to reduce those emissions by at least 40 % below 1990 levels till 2030, which would help make Europe the first climate neutral continent by the mid-21st century. Consequently, the expected 2050 emission reduction target for the EU is 80 %–90 % below 1990 levels. The EU’s new economy decarbonisation framework – The European Green Deal – outlines and summarises Europe’s ambition to become a world’s first climate neutral continent by 2050. This supposedly can be achieved by turning climate and environmental challenges into opportunities across all policy areas and making the energy transition just and inclusive for all. The transport, and particularly road transport, is one of the most significant fossil fuel dependent segments of national economies across the EU. Oil dependency of all segments of the transport sector makes it the single biggest source of GHG emissions in the united Europe as well. Road transport is responsible for about 73 % of total transport GHG emissions, as Europe’s more than 308.3 million road vehicles are over 90 % reliant on conventional types of oil-based fuels (diesel, gasoline etc.). However, there is a wide range of low-emission alternative fuels for all kinds of transport that can reduce overall oil dependence of the EU’s transport sector and significantly lower GHG in road transport. Among these alternatives a tandem of the natural gas and biomethane could be named as one of the most promising for short and mid-term transport decarbonisation solutions both in the EU and Latvia.


Atslēgas vārdi
biomethane, decarbonisation, natural gas, road transport
DOI
10.2478/lpts-2020-0016
Hipersaite
https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/lpts-2020-0016

Savickis, J., Zemīte, L., Zeltiņš, N., Bode, I., Jansons, L. Natural Gas and Biomethane in the European Road Transport: The Latvian Perspective. Latvian Journal of Physics and Technical Sciences, 2020, Vol. 57, No. 3, 57.-72.lpp. ISSN 0868-8257. e-ISSN 2255-8896. Pieejams: doi:10.2478/lpts-2020-0016

Publikācijas valoda
English (en)
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