• Opel, which manufactures its Corsa and Meriva models with LPG engines at the Figueruelas factory in Zaragoza (at a rate of 120 cars a day), will boost the commercialisation of its range of vehicles using this alternative fuel, and will collaborate with Repsol in technology development activities.
• Repsol will support Opel in its commercial strategies for vehicles using automotive LPG, and will open around 100 new Autogas sites, in addition to the 235 it already has in its service station network.
• Autogas offers savings of up to 40% on fuel and benefits from the PIVE 5 and PIMA Aire government schemes for efficient and environmentally-friendly vehicles due to its low particulate and NOx emissions. It also reduces the greenhouse effect because of its minimal CO2 emissions.

  Repsol’s LPG Commercial Director in Spain, José Manuel Hernández-Carrero, and the Executive Commercial Director of General Motors España, Enrico De Lorenzi, signed a strategic agreement at the Opel factory to promote the sale of Autogas powered vehicles and increase usage of this alternative fuel in Spain. The event was attended by the GM Managing Director and Manager of the GM España factory, Antonio Cobo, and the Manager of Repsol’s Autogas Project, David Fernández de Heredia.

Through this alliance, Repsol, the market leader for Autogas distribution in Spain, will join forces with Opel, which offers a wide range of models that are able to use automotive LPG. Opel currently has 115,000 LPG automobiles on the road in Europe.

“Through this agreement, Repsol has reinforced its commitment to the development of Autogas in the Spanish market, where it has achieved growth in line with other European markets thanks to its significant environmental and economic advantages, which have made it the most widely-used alternative fuel in the world”, José Manuel Hernández-Carrero pointed out.
According to Enrico De Lorenzi, “General Motors is committed to alternative clean fuels such as LPG, which has had great success in many European countries as a result of its economic advantages, environmental friendliness and the long range of LPG-powered vehicles. We welcome this agreement, as it will allow customers, in particular all our fleet clients, to commit to this fuel in the knowledge that they will have access to an increasingly extensive network of refuelling sites”.
Antonio Cobo, GM Managing Director and Manager of the GM España factory, said that “the quality of the LPG installation in our vehicles is guaranteed, as the AutoGas version designed by our engineers is assembled as a fully integrated part of our manufacturing process, offering an additional option for the vehicle without the involvement of any third parties, garages or conversion centres”.
David Fernandez de Heredia, Manager of Repsol’s Autogas Project, pointed out that “there is growing demand for Autogas in Spain which has been boosted by the range of products offered by manufacturers and fuel sector operators, as is shown by the figures compiled by the Ministry of Industry’s Strategic Reserves Corporation (CORES), which reveal an increase of almost 30% in the use of automotive LPG in 2013”.

Repsol currently has 235 Autogas sites and will continue to add around 100 new sites every year through to 2015. As well as these service stations with automotive LPG, there are also around 300 ‘skids’, facilities located on the premises of companies and professional groups that operate fleets using this type of alternative fuel.

Opel, which manufactures its Meriva and Corsa models with automotive LPG engines at the Figueruelas factory in Zaragoza and offers this type of model in virtually all of its range, will boost sales of all its models through this alternative fuel and aims to collaborate with Repsol in the Autogas R&D being carried out by the energy company at its Technology Development Centre in Móstoles (Madrid).
There are currently more than 28,000 vehicles using Autogas in Spain. In 2013 the total number of these types of cars increased by 100% in comparison with 2012 and growth is expected to continue in the coming years.
The growing demand for Autogas automobiles has been boosted by the economic and environmental advantages it offers, as well as its inclusion in public subsidy schemes such as the Efficient Vehicle Incentive Programme (PIVE 5) and PIMA Aire, which is specifically for light commercial vehicles. Many city councils and autonomous regions are also committed to Autogas and have implemented measures such as rebates on the Tax on Motor Vehicles and discounts on toll roads, among other examples.

Repsol LPG Press Service
José Luis Guzmán
jlguzman@dedalocomunicacion.com

Manuel Díaz-Ureña
manuel@dedalocomunicacion.com

www.repsol.com/es_es/