Sales of natural gas vehicles soar
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An influx of new natural gas vehicles has sparked a sales surge in Sweden, where the monthly sales rate leapt from around 150 to more than 700 units according to NGVA Europe.

At the heart of the success is the new Volkswagen TSI Passat EcoFuel, which has been responsible for 60 per cent of sales in the country. It is followed by the Mercedes B 170 NGT, which makes up 24 per cent of sales in the country. The two market leaders are followed by the likes of the VW Touran, the VW Caddy, the Opel Zafira, the Mercedes E200 NGT, the Opel Combo and the Fiat Punto. In total, natural gas vehicles made up 2.9 per cent of all new passenger cars sold in Sweden in June.

In the van segment, the Volkswagen Caddy accounts for some 45 per cent of total sales with the likes of the Opel Combo, the VW Transporter, the Fiat Fiorino, the VW Pick-up, the Iveco Daily and the Fiat Doblo also contributing to sales.

According to NVGA Europe, the total sales are back to the high rates achieved in mid 2006 when Volvo Cars temporarily knocked back the natural gas vehicle market by announcing its intention to discontinue sales of its bi-fuel cars.

At the end of 2008, Sweden had just 17,000 natural gas vehicles - but the sales in June ran at an annual rate of 8,700 vehicles.


Buck