In a recent announcement, Russian steel producer and iron ore miner, Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) said it is developing the use of gas engine fuel based on liquefied natural gas (LNG) technology. Today, 10 of the company’s KAMAZ trucks already run on LNG to transport cargo.

MMK’s Motor Transport Department ATU LLC is one of the largest transportation companies in the South Urals. The company has a fleet of around 2,000 units of machinery, approximately half of which are KAMAZ trucks. Since July of this year, ATU LLC has been performing test operations with the KAMAZ-65115 dump truck. The results from experimental use showed that the performance characteristics of a vehicle running on LNG do not differ from similar models operating on traditional fuel. As a result, the company has decided to increase its fleet of LNG-fuelled KAMAZ trucks to 20 in 2021.

‘The key advantages of running vehicles on LNG are that the cost of fuel is two times lower compared to its diesel counterpart, and also the significant reduction of harmful emissions into the atmosphere,’ said Vladimir Tseytin, Director of ATU LLC. ‘That’s why we plan to significantly upgrade our fleet with LNG-powered vehicles over the next few years.’

ATU LLC is also implementing a project that will add equipment to its BELAZ 30 t class 7540 mining trucks that will allows switching existing diesel mining equipment to dual fuel mode without the need to purchase new engines. This mode assumes that the BELAZ vehicle’s combustion chamber is being supplied with LNG in addition to diesel fuel and oxygen. This makes it possible to replace up to 40% of the diesel fuel that is usually combusted, without affecting technical performance. In this method, the economic impact and reduction of harmful emissions comes to around 20%. A new CRYOBAK chamber for LNG is expected to be delivered in January 2021, and the company plans to purchase this equipment for 25 BELAZ vehicles once it is tested.

The use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as automobile fuel has become increasingly common in recent years. Liquefied natural gas is colourless, odourless, non-flammable, non-toxic¬, non-explosive, non-flammable and non-corrosive. LNG has a density that is around half that of water, meaning it remains on the surface in the event of a spill and turns to vapour relatively quickly. LNG’s much lower volume also makes it more convenient to store and transport.