For frequent travelers, the math can work in their favor. This analysis examines a conventional car with gas consumption around 9 L per 100 km in city driving and about 6 L per 100 km on highways. It assumes an initial HBO methane installation cost of 60,000 rubles, with subsidies lowering that price in supportive regions and raising it where incentives are smaller. The calculation includes the energy needed to warm up before acceleration and ongoing equipment maintenance costs.
Gasoline costs are considered at 52 rubles per liter, while methane (CNG) is priced by Gazprom in the mid-20s per cubic meter. A key correction factor is required because gas volume and liquid fuel volumes do not translate directly into energy use. For example, the Lada Vesta CNG typically consumes about 10–12 cubic meters per 100 km in city driving and about 7–8 cubic meters on highways.
Under these assumptions, positive returns appear after roughly 35,000 to 40,000 kilometers of driving on gas fuel. The payoff may occur within a year or stretch to about three years depending on the annual mileage. Idle running near a gas station can hurt the economics, and users should expect to drive regularly since typical gas cylinders hold 15–25 cubic meters.
Propane-butane LNG behaves similarly: it tends to be more expensive than methane, yet HBO remains cheaper on a per-kilometer basis. LNG offers a larger driving range and, crucially, can be refueled many more times between fills.
Where to refuel?
A troubling trend is emerging as the number of autogas filling stations (CNG) declines. By fall, about two dozen stations had closed, leaving roughly 650 stations, with a wide geographic spread that concentrates in some regions and is sparse in others.
The principal driver of closures is profitability. While CNG stations may be cost-effective to build with substantial subsidies, ongoing operations struggle due to lower demand for compressed natural gas fuel.
Demand is tightly linked to the share of vehicles equipped for methane-LPG. Factory versions have shown modest growth, rising from about 0.5% of total car sales to around 2.6% over five years. Independent retrofits have also advanced rapidly: in 2019 roughly 15,000 owners installed HBO, 2020 saw about 10,000, and 2021 nearly 20,000. In absolute terms, this remains a small slice of the market, though the momentum is noticeable.
In total, less than 1.5 million vehicles in a fleet of roughly 44 million passenger cars in the country run on gas. The vast majority use propane-butane rather than methane. This creates a classic cycle: more gas cars require more filling stations, while more filling stations are needed for greater gas adoption. Gazprom has projected that the number of CNG stations could reach 1,000 within two years and that the opening rate will accelerate.
Number of CNG filling stations in Russia (excluding multi-fuel filling stations)
|
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|
356 |
600 |
721 |
743 |
730 |
635 |
Consumption of compressed natural gas (CNG) as motor fuel (million m3)
|
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|
850 |
1190 |
1230 |
1260 |
1300 |
1243 |
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