OREANDA-NEWS. The international Africa Eco Race 2015 rally, in which a natural gas-fueled sports truck on the KAMAZ-Master team took part, finished in Senegal yesterday. Following the results of 12 stages, the gas-fueled KAMAZ driven by Sergey Kupriyanov made it to the top three in the overall standing of the race.

The awarding ceremony of the Africa Eco Race 2015 rally winners took place near the legendary Pink Lake in Dakar. The KAMAZ-Master team confirmed their Champion’s title again: Anton Shibalov’s crew came first, Sergey Kupriyanov’s crew finished second among the trucks. In the overall standing the team took the second and third places respectively.

It was the first time for a gas-fueled KAMAZ to participate in an international rally. The gas equipment installed in the truck operated efficiently and proved its reliability in African conditions. A mobile gas filling station (MGFS) of Gazprom Gazomotornoye Toplivo provided for refueling the sports vehicle with natural gas.

“Finishing at the Pink Lake in Dakar is a dream of anyone keen on rally raids. The cunning of the Sahara Desert, soft sands of Mauritania, sharp rocks of Morocco, hundreds and thousands kilometers off the road across the glorious sites of West Africa. We’ve succeeded! Not only have we made it to the finish, but we’ve also obtained a result magnificent for the newcomers of such a rally. We scored second among the trucks and third in the overalls among four-wheel vehicles. The task was fulfilled to the highest standard. It was the work of the whole team, including the gas filling station crew, the mechanics, the maintenance group that allowed us to achieve such a result,” Sergey Kupriyanov commented on the results of the race.
Background

The gas-fueled KAMAZ is a special model of a sport truck powered by natural gas. The truck was customized in 2013 by the KAMAZ-Master team with the support of Gazprom and VTB Bank. The project is aimed at demonstrating the potential of natural gas as a vehicle fuel.

A mobile gas filling station (MGFS) of Gazprom Gazomotornoye Toplivo provided for refueling the vehicle during the rally. The vehicle was refueled every day after being maintained by a mechanic. 200 cubic meters of natural gas was enough for the gas-fueled KAMAZ to cover a distance of 600 to 700 kilometers with its engine operating in a combined cycle (gas & diesel).

Gazprom Gazomotornoye Toplivo is the single operator of the Russian NGV market. The company was set up by Gazprom in December 2012 with a view to promote natural gas use as a vehicle fuel, which is more eco-friendly, efficient and safe as compared to conventional fuels.

Africa Eco Race is an annual rally raid covering a historic Dakar rally route: through Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal. The race route comprises 12 stages and a day-off at the Atlantic coast in Dakhla, Morocco. The route length is 6,000 kilometers, half of which accounts for special sections.