On July 7, the 5th NGVA Europe International Show & Workshops was officially launched at Brussels Kart Hall 1 with the Opening Ceremony & Reception Cocktail, which was attended by several officials and representatives of major companies and associations. The keynote speech was delivered by Siim Kallas, Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner in charge of Transport.
Willy Segers, Mayor of Dilbeek City; Philippe Van Deven, NGVA Europe Vice-Chairman and General Manager of GNVERT; and Juan Vazquez, Chairman of ARGB (Association Royale des Gaziers Belges), also spoke during the ribbon cutting ceremony. Lennart Pilskog led the ceremony and said to the audience: “There’s a very good foundation for NGVs”.
“Europe faces a lot of challenges regarding transportation, such as traffic congestion, the need of clean energy sources and the dependence of importing energy,” explained Kallas. “Final decisions have been made for spreading the use of alternative fuels, including, of course, NGVs.”
In this regard, the Commissioner referred EU’s recently approved Directive on the Deployment of Alternative Fuels, which provides a very solid basis for natural gas to play a major role in reaching the EU climate goals whilst creating new jobs for Europe. “CNG is not only cheaper because of his cost. It’s also cheaper because it causes less health problems to people,” he added.
Mayor Willy Segers also showed his support to NGV market growth. “We really take into account the use of natural gas. The residents of Dilbeek have a good life quality and we know the importance of constructing CNG stations. We’re working from the basis, from a very small city but we are aware of its importance,” he remarked.
Moreover, Philippe Van Deven thanked the support Siim Kallas has given to the industry. “Natural gas is the only viable solution, and the most cost-effective, for transportation,” he said. “We are in this way, and I’m sure NGVs will be a big success in the future.”
Finally, Juan Vázquez highlighted the “impressive organization of the event” and pointed out: “It was a great decision to do this event en Belgium, we are in a turning point at this moment. There’s definitely a market for CNG in this country”.
