BP buys stake in UK biomethane station operator

BP announced on December 2 it had bought a 28.6% stake in Gasrec, a UK firm that builds, owns and operates bio-LNG and bio-compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations for heavy goods vehicles.

The UK major will supply Gasrec with bio-methane produced mainly from organic wastes, such as food and dairy manure. The company said the move would expand its position in the renewable gas production and distribution space, adding to its market-leading position in the US.

"Bio-LNG and bio-CNG play a crucial role in the energy transition and decarbonisation of the heavy-freight industry and is another example of how we’re helping decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors," BP's vice president for trading and shipping, Carol Howle, said.

Founded in 2003, Gasrec was the UK's first supplier of biomethane to the road transport sector. It fuels the fleets of some of the UK's biggest retailers, parcel delivery companies and hauliers, including Asda, Ocado, Gregory Distribution and Reed Boardall. Its network of stations services 1,250 vehicles daily.

UK road transport was responsible for 27% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions in 2019. And while heavy goods vehicles account for just 5% of vehicle miles travelled, they are responsible for 16% of the sector's emissions. Renewable gas reduces the carbon footprint of heavy goods vehicles by up to 85% compared with diesel, BP estimates.