EU lays out alternative fueling timelines

The European Commission tells member states to create infrastructure.    The European Commission has set a mid-2016 deadline for member states to present plans to help create an EU-wide network of standardized alternative fueling posts.
   According to the commission, one of the barriers to clean-fuel acceptance is the lack of refueling stations. With the directive, member states will now have to provide fueling stations that can service natural gas, hydrogen and electricity-fueled vehicles. These fueling stations will also need to take into account maritime access and the ability for LNG-powered barges and ships to refuel.
   For electric fuel, these standardized posts — the commission suggests “a minimum of one recharging point per 10 vehicles” — will be complete with a common plug for the charging of electronic vehicles, and must be completed by 2020. LNG stations for road use must be built ever 400 kilometers by 2025, with CNG stations built every 150 kilometers by 2025. For hydrogen stations, the commission is only shooting for “a sufficient number of publicly accessible refueling points” within the next decade.
   “Alternative fuels are key to improving the security of energy supply, reducing the impact of transport on the environment and boosting EU competitiveness,” Commission Vice President Siim Kallas said in a statement. “With these new rules, the EU provides long-awaited legal certainty for companies to start investing, and the possibility for economies of scale. EU Member States requested flexibility in deploying the infrastructure. It is now up to them to develop the right national policy frameworks.”