World premiere for Scania's first ethanol-powered trucks − rapid transition to sustainable urban transport

World premiere for Scania's first ethanol-powered trucks − rapid transition to
sustainable urban transport 

After nearly 20 years as a supplier of ethanol buses, Scania is now broadening
its range of ethanol-powered vehicles for urban traffic. Today the company's
first ethanol trucks are being unveiled to international trade journalists, who
are test-driving the trucks in Södertälje. Starting next year, this will enable
hauliers, authorities and municipalities to run both passenger and goods
transport on the same renewable fuel.


Scania is working together with other interested parties in establishing an
infrastructure for ethanol fuel distribution. Once the fuel infrastructure is in
place, it will also be possible for smaller transport companies to invest in
ethanol-powered vehicles.

Scania regards ethanol as the most cost-efficient renewable fuel currently
available for urban operation, since it can contribute immediately to reducing
carbon dioxide emissions. Scania has produced ethanol bus engines for close to
20 years. The technology is mature and viable for intense everyday city service.

Ethanol is as easy to handle as other liquid fuels. By its nature, it provides
cleaner combustion, which means that not only carbon dioxide but other emissions
are lower.

If ethanol is produced from Brazilian sugar cane, it provides up to 90 per cent
lower carbon dioxide emissions than diesel fuel. Trial production from forest
waste with integrated bioprocesses extracting heat or electric power indicates
similarly high results.

Production of ethanol as an alternative to petrol is sharply increasing
worldwide. The production infrastructure is thus already in place. 

Mature technology
Scania has built 600 ethanol-powered city buses since 1989, supplying most of
them to Swedish cities with impressive environmental benefits. According to
Stockholm Public Transport (SL), there are no operational drawbacks as long as
scheduled maintenance requirements are followed. The buses are completely
standard, using regular Scania components. 

Scania ethanol buses are now operating in a number of cities outside Sweden, for
example in Norway, Spain, Italy, Poland, the United Kingdom and Brazil; as well
as in China and Australia. Further deliveries are pending to Denmark and
Belgium. Interest is growing rapidly in Europe, South Africa and several Latin
American countries, while in the United States the ethanol market is booming.

Additional cities have expressed interest, not least since the Clinton Climate
Initiative (CCI) declared Stockholm a model of what can be achieved and
described Scania's ethanol buses as one of the best existing solutions to reduce
carbon dioxide emissions from urban traffic.

Ethanol engine with diesel combustion
Scania's ethanol engines work according to the diesel principle
(compression-ignition) and the efficiency of this third generation is up to
diesel engine standards. The ethanol used for diesel combustion contains 5-7 per
cent additives that improve ignition and lubrication. Passenger cars running on
ethanol or an ethanol/petrol mix have Otto engines with considerably lower
efficiency. 

Scania is the only manufacturer to master this diesel-ethanol technology.

The new ethanol engine is an adaptation of Scania's 9-litre diesel engine with
charge-cooling and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). The engine easily meets the
enhanced environmentally friendly vehicle (EEV) standard, which is slightly
stricter than Euro 5 − the exhaust standard being introduced in the European
Union in October 2009. 

Performance is generous for a 9-litre engine. Power is 270 hp and torque a full
1200 Nm, resulting in excellent response and driveability. 

For further information, please contact Hans-Åke Danielsson, Press Manager, 
tel. +46 8 553 856 62.




Scania is one of the world's leading manufacturers of trucks and buses for heavy
transport applications, and of industrial and marine engines. A growing
proportion of the company's operations consists of products and services in the
financial and service sectors, assuring Scania customers of cost-effective
transport solutions and maximum uptime. Employing 35,000 people, Scania operates
in about 100 countries. Research and development activities are concentrated in
Sweden, while production takes place in Europe and South America, with
facilities for global interchange of both components and complete vehicles. Bus
chassis production takes place in Sweden, Brazil and Mexico. Bodybuilding takes
place in Poland and Russia. In 2007, invoiced sales totalled SEK 84.5 billion
and the net income amounted to SEK 8.5 billion.

Scania press releases are available on the Internet, www.scania.com