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| Top page > News > 2007 |
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[Sagawa Express] Sagawa Express Begins Using Bio-fuels for Pickup/Delivery Trucks
- Bio-Natural Gas Trial and Biogasoline Use Started -(7/23/2007) |
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| Sagawa Express Co, Ltd., a member of the SG Holdings Group, conducts trial use of "bio-natural gas" in natural gas vehicles, while also commencing use of "biogasoline" in cargo minivans (gasoline-fueled), with the aim of reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from its pickup/delivery trucks. |
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| (1) |
Trial Use of "Bio-Natural Gas" (Area: Kobe City, Hyogo) |
| Sagawa Express Kobe Sales Branch (in Kobe City, Hyogo) has been using bio-natural gas in some of its natural gas vehicles since May 23. |
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| Biogas is obtained through methane fermentation of livestock waste, raw garbage, sewage sludge, wood waste and other organic waste (biomass) from animals and plants. A promising next-generation fuel, it not only helps reduce consumption of fossil fuels, including gasoline and diesel oil, it also curtails greenhouse gas generated through fossil fuel combustion. |
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| The Kobe municipal government, together with a private company, co-developed a device to purify digestion gas from sewage treatment, using a high-pressure water absorption method, and to use resulting "bio-natural gas" with a methane level of over 98%. The municipal government has been conducting demonstration experiments since 2006, with such public vehicles as city buses and garbage trucks. |
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| Also, with the support of the Construction Bureau of Kobe City, our company has been engaged in trial use since May 23, with natural gas vehicles owned by Sagawa Express Kobe Sales Branch. |
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| Sagawa Express will examine the impact and performance of "bio-natural gas" on vehicles and, based on the results, will study the possibility of increasing the number of target vehicles. |
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| (2) |
Use of "Biogasoline" (Areas: Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba) |
| From autumn this year we are planning to commence using biogasoline, which is currently being test-marketed at 50 filling stations in Tokyo and three other prefectures (Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba), in some of our cargo minivans allocated to those areas. |
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| Biogasoline is a type of fuel made by blending regular gasoline with bioethanol, a substance obtained from cane waste, wood waste and other plants such as barley and corn. Based on the idea that combustion of plant-derived biofuels will not raise the total atmospheric CO2 content, since plants of subsequent generations will grow by absorbing CO2 through photosynthesis, CO2 released through biofuel combustion is not counted as greenhouse gas emission. |
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| Consequently, as one of its greenhouse gas reduction policies, the Japanese government has set a target of cutting CO2 emissions from transportation fuel combustion. As a grant-aided project under the "Fiscal 2007 Program for Introduction of Biomass-Derived Fuels" by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the oil industry began to test-market "biogasoline," a mixture of bioethanol and regular gasoline, at 50 filling stations in the metropolitan area on April 27 this year. |
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| Toward full-scale bioethanol marketing, scheduled for 2010, gradual expansion of test-marketing bases is being planned. In line with such expansion, our company is also planning to increase the number of target vehicles. |
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In May 2003, Sagawa Express became the first Japanese company-- and the world's only logistics company-- to join the Climate Savers Programme, a global warming prevention program run by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Under this program, we aim at reducing total CO2 emissions from our business activities at a rate of 6% by year 2012, in comparison with the base year of 2002.
As a means of achieving this goal, we have established a plan to introduce a cumulative total of 7,000 natural gas vehicles by the year 2012; so far we have introduced 3,394 natural gas vehicles-- the most such vehicles owned by one Japanese company-- and have installed a total of 7 in-house natural gas stations. (Figures as of June 20, 2007.) |
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| To fulfill our responsibility as an enterprise using vehicles as operation tools, we will continue to actively introduce natural gas vehicles, while also promoting the evaluation and use of various alternative fuels, thereby to engage in business operations that are friendly to the environment. |
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| "Bio-natural gas" being filled |
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