France tests rail shipment for LNG
French company Elengy successfully tested the rail shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the southern part of the country to Italy. It is the first LNG movement on the railway network in France.
Elengy, an operator of LNG terminals, performed the trial rail shipment of LNG in a partnership with Total and with the support of the Région Sud and the Port of Marseille Fos. An ISO container was loaded with LNG at Elengy’s terminal in Fos Cavaou on the Mediterranean coast of France. Initially, the container was transported by lorry from the terminal to the Miramas marshalling yard in 30 kilometres. The main part of the delivery was performed by rail from Miramas to Milan in Italy.
“This mode of transport offers several benefits: it allows large volumes of LNG to be transported, it reduces the cost of transport and it facilitates access to LNG in certain regions, while significantly reducing the polluting emissions associated with its transport,” Elengy reports.
Plans for modal shift
Before the test rail shipment, Elengy transported LNG from its terminal in Fos Cavaou only by road. Now, the French company is considering the possibility to completely change its supply chain by shifting to rail. “This success paves the way for the development of LNG transport logistics chains by rail to serve regions in France that are far from our terminals as well as other neighbouring countries,” Sandra Roche-Vu Quang, CEO of Elengy, comments.