Last Thursday, the youth pastor of the Evangelical City Mission in Giessen, Oliver Merz, received a fuel card for his natural gas-powered Opel Zafira. The driver of the brand new natural gas vehicle is taking advantage of the Stadtwerke Gießen AG (SWG) subsidy programme and saving money.
Thorsten Dippel, a member of SWG's marketing department, presented the proud owner of the natural gas vehicle with his tenth fuel card to date. This is part of the SWG promotion programme. Anyone who registers a new natural gas vehicle in the district of Giessen or the Lahn-Dill district by 31 March 2005 can fill up with natural gas at half price for a whole year at the Aral filling station in Marburger Strasse 229 in Giessen. Instead of 64 cents, a kilogramme of natural gas will then only cost 32 cents. Looking at the price display, every natural gas driver is delighted.
The youth preacher is absolutely convinced of natural gas as a fuel. Not only the unrivalled low price, but also the environmental benefits favour natural gas as a fuel for Merz. Vehicles optimised for natural gas are characterised by very low pollutant emissions compared to petrol and diesel cars: Carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide are reduced by up to 80 per cent (30 per cent compared to diesel). The combustion of natural gas is practically soot and particle-free.
Oliver Merz expects to cover around 30,000 kilometres a year in his Opel Zafira. The natural gas vehicle is not only used privately by Merz, but is also used for official purposes in the children's and youth work of the Evangelical City Mission.
The energy consultants at the infoCentre on Marktplatz are available to provide tailored advice on natural gas vehicles. The infoCentre is open Monday to Friday from 9 am to 6 pm and on Saturdays from 9 am to 2 pm.