In mid-February, the Federal Cabinet extended the tax reduction for natural gas as a fuel until 2026. Together with the Stadtwerke Gießen subsidy programme, the switch will continue to pay off in the long term. Since January, drivers of natural gas cars in Giessen have also been refuelling with particularly climate-friendly biomethane.
A subsidised energy tax will continue to apply to natural gas as a fuel beyond 2018. This was decided by the Federal Cabinet on 15 February. Accordingly, the reduced tax rate will remain in its current form until 2024 - the reduction will then be gradually phased out by the end of 2026.
Many environmental benefits
The government's decision to extend the tax concession for a further nine years is no coincidence. After all, natural gas as a fuel has great potential for achieving the ambitious climate targets in the transport sector. This is because natural gas cars emit around a quarter less CO2 than comparable diesel vehicles. Compared to petrol vehicles, the reduction is even a third. And the trend is rising. As more and more CO2-neutral biogas is being fed into the natural gas grid throughout Germany, this balance should improve even further. In Giessen, only bio natural gas has been available at the petrol pumps since the beginning of 2017.
But it's not just the climate that benefits from natural gas in the tank. Especially in light of the current debate about nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter and driving bans in urban centres, the modern fuel appears in a new light. This is because natural gas vehicles offer decisive advantages when it comes to these two problematic emissions: The combustion of natural gas produces virtually no particulate matter and no nitrogen oxide. As a result, vehicles powered by this fuel are cost-effective and market-ready alternatives - especially in particularly polluted areas such as city centres.
"We are delighted that the German government is sending out a positive signal in favour of natural gas mobility and will continue to promote alternative drive systems in the future and provide a long-term financial incentive to switch to this climate-friendly fuel," explains Ina Weller, company spokesperson for Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG). She also points out: "In combination with our SWG subsidy programme, switching from petrol or diesel to natural gas is even more worthwhile."
Ecologically and economically sensible
All those who opt for a natural gas vehicle not only help the environment, but also save money. Thanks to the tax reduction, natural gas is still the cheapest of all fuels. With the support of Stadtwerke Gießen, this saving is even more significant: Anyone taking advantage of the SWG subsidy programme can fill up with natural gas at the pumps at Marburger Strasse 229 and on the SWG premises at Lahnstrasse 31 at half price for a whole year. All information on the subsidy conditions can be found on the Stadtwerke Gießen website at www.stadtwerke-giessen.de/energie/privatkunden/erdgas.
If you have any questions, the contact persons at the SWG customer centre on Marktplatz can also help - in person on site, by telephone on 0 800 23 02 100 and by email at energieberatung@stadtwerke-giessen.de.
07.03.2017