Sustainable Mobility: Air Liquide Announces the Acquisition of FordonsGas in Sweden

Regulatory News :

Air Liquide (Paris:AI) announces the signature of an agreement for the acquisition of FordonsGas, a company that distributes CBG (Compressed Biogas) for the Swedish transportation market.

Founded in 1998, FordonsGas owns and operates more than 40 CBG stations in Sweden, making it one of the largest distribution networks for this alternative fuel in that country. The company employs 32 people and currently generates annual revenue of around 20 million euros. The CBG filling stations operated by FordonsGas enable the owners and users of natural gas vehicles (NGVs) - taxis, corporate vehicle fleets, buses, and passenger cars - to acquire fuel that is more environmentally friendly. Nearly 70% is produced from renewable energies.

Sweden is one of Europe’s key markets in the development of sustainable mobility based on biogas. In 2009, the Swedish government rolled out an Energy and Climate policy with the objectives of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% between now and 2020 and eliminating the use of fossil fuels in the transportation sector entirely by 2030. Today, there are nearly 50,000 natural gas vehicles (NGVs) on the road in Sweden that run on Compressed Natural Gas, a number supportive of the rapid development of Compressed Biogas (CBG) as a fuel source.

In Sweden, Air Liquide has supplied its gas liquefaction technologies to one of the world’s largest facilities for biogas production. This acquisition will thus complement the Group’s positioning in the biogas market. Biogas is an alternative to fossil fuels which, like hydrogen, offers a response to energy and environmental challenges.

Francois Darchis, member of the Air Liquide Executive Committee supervising Innovation, commented: "This acquisition will constitute a major step for Air Liquide in the sustainable mobility sector. It will allow the Group to be present across the biogas value chain, from the production of biomethane from organic and farm waste to purification, liquefaction and distribution. For Air Liquide, it will also be an opportunity to better understand the new consumer usages of sustainable mobility, today through the distribution of biogas and tomorrow through the distribution of hydrogen energy.”

This acquisition should be completed by the end of this year.

Biogas, a fuel that is 100% made from renewable energies
Biogas offers a way of reusing organic and farm waste that does not compete against the food chain. It can be used in compressed form (passenger cars, buses, etc.) or in its liquefied form (for long-haul trucks). It is produced using the purification and liquefaction technologies developed by Air Liquide, which enhance all types of biogas (organic and farm waste, sludge, etc.) and allow either their injection in the natural gas network, the production of fuel for vehicles, or the production of renewable hydrogen. Worldwide, Air Liquide has around thirty client references in the area of biogas, in particular using the membrane separation technologies developed by Medal, a subsidiary of the Air Liquide group.

World leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, Air Liquide is present in 80 countries with more than 50,000 employees and serves more than 2 million customers and patients. Oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen have been at the core of the company’s activities since its creation in 1902. Air Liquide’s ambition is to be the leader in its industry, delivering long-term performance and acting responsibly.

Air Liquide ideas create value over the long term. At the core of the company’s development are the commitment and constant inventiveness of its people.

Air Liquide anticipates the challenges of its markets, invests locally and globally, and delivers high-quality solutions to its customers and patients, and the scientific community.

The company relies on competitiveness in its operations, targeted investments in growing markets and innovation to deliver profitable growth over the long-term.

Air Liquide’s revenues amounted to € 15.2 billion in 2013, and its solutions that protect life and the environment represented around 40% of sales. Air Liquide is listed on the Paris Euronext stock exchange (compartment A) and is a member of the CAC 40 and Dow Jones Euro Stoxx 50 indexes.

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