Conventional diesel-fuelled internal combustion engines will continue to play a role in public and mass transit systems well into the future and can be configured to deliver vastly reduced exhaust emissions.

All Scania’s modern and efficient bus diesel engines can run on biodiesel, which can lower CO₂ emissions by more than 80%, simply by substituting regular diesel fuel for EN 14214-compliant B100.

B100 biodiesel is readily available in Australia and is ideally suited to vehicles that are in constant use. In addition to reducing exhaust emissions in high density environments, biofuel is made from what would otherwise be waste material, for example agricultural off-cuts or used cooking oil.

Scania has formed working relationships with ECOTECH Biodiesel, Just Biodiesel and Refuelling Solutions to provide a turn-key solution for bus and coach operators around Australia who are focused on reducing their emissions in a meaningful way, without requiring significant investment in infrastructure or new vehicle systems.

In addition, B100 biofuel is produced in Australia from local sources, reducing our exposure to imported fuels and importantly, keeping investment local.

Switching to run a fleet of existing or new Scania buses on B100 biofuel can happen very quickly and should not require any significant mechanical adjustment to your vehicles. The use of biodiesel can also assist your customers in their quest for a lowered overall carbon footprint.

“Our customers are asking us now how we can assist them to reduce their carbon footprint, and we have answers,” says Scania Australia’s Sustainability Solutions Manager, Anthony King.

“Fortunately, we have been prepared for these questions and have established partnerships with relevant stakeholders so that we can deliver a ready-made, here-and-now biofuel solution. Supply is stable and pricing makes sense, especially when viewed against the whole-of-life costs of some other alternative systems.

“Late model Scania bus engines can run on B100 biodiesel. It just needs to be pumped into the vehicle’s tanks. The fuel must comply with the EN 14214 standard, of course. And if they need to refuel away from the depot, regular diesel can be used interchangeably,” Anthony says.

“If you are running school or charter runs and your customers are asking about low emission solutions, the switch to biodiesel would be a quick and easy first step,” says Julian Gurney, Scania Australia Director of Sales for Buses and Power Solutions. “The benefits for route bus operators are equally impressive.

“In most operating environments, biofuels make the most sense because our buses, running on B100, deliver broadly similar performance and retain a high degree of fuel efficiency, in addition to the benefit of significantly reduced emissions.

“Of course, if you were to combine B100 biofuel with our Electric-Hybrid bus chassis programme, not only would you gain a significant fuel consumption saving, but you would maximise the emissions reduction as well, given the distance that the electric-hybrid chassis can travel in silent mode using battery power alone.

“The Scania Electric-Hybrid has already been well received in Australia, using a combination of diesel engine and electric machine to boost performance or provide emissions free approach to and departure from bus stops, but the benefit is unquestionably compounded if combined with low CO₂ emission B100 biofuels,” Julian says. “It’s the best of both worlds.

“We have very high confidence in B100 biofuel,” Julian says. “European operators have been running their Scania buses and coaches on biofuels for many years with excellent results and with up to 80% CO₂ emissions reduction well-to-wheel.

Using B100 biodiesel gives you the unmatched Scania reliability you need today, with significantly lowered climate impact.” he says.