September 7, 2012
Volume 15 Edition 35
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HURRY: Discount Rates for NGV Conference/Summit End This Coming Friday!
New Study: Natural Gas Usage by U.S. Trucks to Skyrocket
WV Governor Wants the State to Move to ALT Fuel Vehicles/NGVs
New NGV Safety Documents Now Available
Frito-Lay to Add CNG Trucks to Fleet in Wisconsin
Utah’s Second LNG Station in Full Operation
Beer Distributor Completes Conversion to CNG Trucks at Arizona Facility
Pennsylvania Turnpike Funds Feasibility Study for LNG Stations
PA DEP Announces NGV Seminars in Preparation for Grant RFP
CNG Station Opens in Indiana
Oklahoma Financial Companies Providing NGV Loans
New Tulsa Public CNG Station Opened
EPA Approves Rolls-Royce Marine Natural Gas Engine
Bolivian NGVs Reach 18 Percent of Market
HURRY: Discount Rates for NGV Conference/Summit End This Coming Friday!
If you haven’t done so already, don’t wait any longer – discount registration rates and hotel
lodging rates for NGVAmerica’s 2012 NGV Conference and Summit end September 15th.
Our annual event takes place October 3rd-5th at the Renaissance Hotel & Convention Center
in Schaumburg IL (just minutes from O’Hare airport).
NGVAmerica has put together a great conference program
(http://www.cleanvehicle.org/conference/2012/conferenceprogram2012.shtml) including
informative presentations, engaging roundtables and plenty of networking time. Our annual
event starts with the Clean Vehicle Education Foundation-hosted Technology Committee
Wednesday afternoon from 2:45-5:45pm, followed by a reception at the nearby Westwood
Tavern in conjunction with attendees of Bobit Business Media’s Green Fleet Conference
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9/9/2012
Expo, which NGVAmerica is sponsoring. Thursday’s program starts off with the everpopular fast-paced Market Development Peer Exchange, followed by a buffet lunch, then
NGVAmerica’s Annual Meeting and Board Meeting, at which staff will brief attendees on
legislative, regulatory, market development, and PR/communications activities undertaken
this year and planned for next. That evening, attendees will enjoy cocktails and heavy hors
d’oeuvres at a reception slated for the elegant and storied Arlington Park Racecourse.
Friday’s Summit is chock full of great sessions including a briefing on the National
Petroleum Councils Future Transportation Fuels study and the role for natural gas; a review of
the industry’s messaging strategies, an update from representatives of Detroit’s “Big 3,” a
natural gas producer roundtable, 8 breakout sessions covering a wide variety of technology,
market development and advocacy topics, a session addressing the role and impact of
traditional retailers entering the “NGV space,” announcement of the multi-state vehicle RFP
awards, an Executive Leadership Roundtable, and presentation of the National Achievement
Awards. After a full day of sessions, attendees will enjoy Friday evening’s reception on the
terrace of Sam & Harry’s Steakhouse at the Renaissance.
Discount hotel rates still apply (the government rate of just $190/night is extended to all
registrants booked by Friday) and we’ve extended early NGV Conference and Summit
registration rates until Friday as well. Members pay just $495, a $300 discount from full
registration rates charged to non-members. For more information about the program, hotel
discounts and registration rates, visit the conference web site at
http://www.cleanvehicle.org/conference/2012/index.shtml. For more information, contact
NGVAmerica’s 2012 NGV Conference and Summit team leader Stephe Yborra at 301.829.2520
or syborra@ngvamerica.org.
New Study: Natural Gas Usage by U.S. Trucks to Skyrocket
According to a new research study released Tuesday by PIRA Energy Group (an energy
consulting firm), the use of natural gas in U.S. trucks and fleet vehicles could skyrocket over
the next two decades as low prices and new infrastructure provide incentive to switch to the
fuel. “Future gas demand in natural gas vehicles has enormous upside potential, led by
private sector initiatives, with or without federal government assistance," PIRA said.
According to the study, gas demand in large trucks and fleet vehicles could reach 14 billion
cubic feet per day (bcfd) by 2030 -- about 20 percent of today's total daily gas production,
according to the report's high case scenario. [14 bcfd equal 5.1 Tcf or almost 41 billion
GGEs per year). In its lower scenario, total demand would half that amount or 7 bcfd. The
higher case scenario could reduce diesel demand by 2.4 million barrels per day, about two
thirds of today's heavy trucking market. Trucks running on LNG would make up 70 percent
of the 14 bcfd, PIRA said. "The past year has witnessed a striking advance of private
initiatives across the stakeholder spectrum -- from major vehicle producers, to fueling
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9/9/2012
infrastructure firms, to fleet operators," PIRA said. "A high degree of natural gas vehicle
visibility and share of new orders in the public transit and refuse market are standout
examples of compressed natural gas vehicle growth taking root."
WV Governor Wants the State to Move to ALT Fuel Vehicles/NGVs
On Friday, at a meeting of the West Virginia’s State Natural Gas Vehicle Task Force, West
Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin said he would like to see all state vehicle stop using gasoline
and use alternative energy sources like natural gas. Tomblin held a round-table discussion
with members of his Task Force, which he created in July. The task force is made up of
elected and non-elected officials from across West Virginia with the goal of giving the state's
chief executive the best recommendations when it comes to running cars and trucks on
natural gas. The governor said he's adamant about the program and wants to get more than
just the state involved. "Considering we are paying about $4 a gallon for either gasoline or
diesel, we can get the same thing with natural gas for about $1.70 to $1.90 a gallon," Tomblin
said. "If we could just start our 55 counties with just one fueling station to allow the state,
city, county all to use them, I think that would encourage private businesses to converting
their vehicles over." The governor said the task force is getting organized and it will hold
meeting across the state.
New NGV Safety Documents Now Available
The Clean Vehicle Education Foundation has published four new documents targeted to
improving the safety of NGV operations. The documents are:
 Guidelines for Maintenance Facility Modification – An analysis of existing codes and
guideline for determining basic requirements for facilities along with a process flow
diagram.
 Advice to Owners of CNG Vehicles After Accidents – General safety practices to make the
NGV is safe after an accident and during the repair process.
 Safety Advice for Defueling CNG Vehicles and Decommissioning and Disposal of CNG Cylinders
– Information for the experienced CNG maintenance technician and repair garage.
 Convert Your Vehicle to Compressed Natural Gas – SAFELY – Information for the end
user looking to purchase a new NGV or to have their vehicle converted to CNG.
What they should know and what they should ask to get a safe NGV.
The documents can be downloaded from the CVEF website atwww.cleanvehicle.org . The
documents are listed on the right side of the home page. For questions about the
documents, contact either Douglas Horne at dbhorne@cleanvehicle.org or John Dimmick at
JDimmick@cleanvehicle.org
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9/9/2012
Frito-Lay to Add CNG Trucks to Fleet in Wisconsin
PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay has announced that it will add 12 new CNG-powered long-haul trucks
to its fleet in Beloit, Wisconsin, to distribute products to destinations across the upper
Midwest (Wisconsin, Illinois, and parts of Indiana, Iowa, and Minnesota). The Freightliner
trucks use Cummins Westport 8.9-liter ISL G dedicated natural gas engines. This is part of
Frito-Lay’s larger plan to deploy 82 CNG trucks by the end of this year and another 100 to
200 more by the end of 2013. Frito-Lay retires 125 trucks a year and would like to replace as
many as possible with those powered by natural gas. The trucks will be able to travel 800
miles without refueling, which has allowed Frito-Lay to build just the one centralized fueling
station. TrilliumCNG is building a private CNG fueling station at the Beloit factory. The
trucks will hit the road before the station is complete, but Frito-Lay has made temporary
arrangements to fuel the trucks in the meantime. Frito-Lay says the technology made
economic sense for the company based on its particular routes and supply chain.
Utah’s Second LNG Station in Full Operation
Last week, BLU LNG (Transfuels, LLC) in partnership with the Utah Clean Cities Coalition
held the grand opening of Utah’s second LNG fueling station in Beaver.
The Beaver location represents the last critical link in the longest LNG transportation
corridor in the United States. Class 7 and 8 heavy duty trucks can now operate on the 700
mile corridor between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles, with public freeway access to LNG
every 200 to 250 miles. The new station is located immediately off Interstate 15 freeway exit
109. The station will be open 24 hours per day, 365 days per year and will accept all major
fleet fueling cards as well as consumer credit cards. In addition to an LNG station in Salt
Lake City and the newly opened Beaver station, BLU LNG currently has two additional sites
under construction in Utah that will be operational within the next 60 days. For more
information, contact Utah Clean Cities Executive Director, Robin Erickson at 435.817.2441
or Robin.Erickson@utahcleancities.org
Beer Distributor Completes Conversion to CNG Trucks at Arizona Facility
Last Monday, Golden Eagle Distributors hosted a green ribbon cutting ceremony at its Casa
Grande (Arizona) facility to announce the completion of its conversion of its diesel fleet to
CNG. Five CNG trucks, identified with a “Powered by Compressed Natural Gas” decal,
began making beer deliveries last Tuesday. Working in conjunction with its fleet partner,
Ryder System, Golden Eagle chose CNG vehicles because they produce less particulate
matter, less nitrogen oxide, less greenhouse gas emissions when compared to diesel engines.
The Casa Grande fleet conversion is the next step in Golden Eagle’s strategic plan to convert
all its diesel vehicles to CNG. The project began last December when the Tucson fleet
converted 23 vehicles to CNG. To fuel these vehicles, construction of a CNG fueling station
has been in process at the company’s headquarters property in Tucson. The fueling station,
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which will open this month, will provide more CNG infrastructure for the Tucson area.
Construction of a CNG fueling station will soon be underway at the Casa Grande facility to
service their new CNG fleet. This station will also provide CNG infrastructure for other
businesses in the Casa Grande area.
Pennsylvania Turnpike Funds Feasibility Study for LNG Stations
The Pennsylvania Turnpike has committed $122,637 to study the potential for LNG stations
along its toll-roads. The turnpike has 17 service plazas, and the study envisions the
installation of LNG pumps at a number of them for use by long-haul truckers. UGI Energy
Services recently constructed an LNG production facility in nearby Ontelaunee Township,
and they expect their plant will help supply fuel to any future LNG stations in the area. The
UGI facility has potential on site storage for up to 1 Bcf of natural gas. Pennsylvania
currently has no LNG stations in operation, but Clean Energy Fuels has announced that it
plans to open three stations. They will be located at Carlisle, Smithton, and Mill Hall. The
study is relying both on surveys from the Pennsylvania trucking industry (facilitated by the
Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association) as well as economic analyses from Penn State. This
study comes as Pennsylvania, under Act 13 of 2012, begins distributing $20 million through
its Natural Gas Energy Development Program being administered by DEP. The money will
help fund the incremental cost of purchasing or retrofitting natural gas-powered vehicles.
PA DEP Announces NGV Seminars in Preparation for Grant RFP
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection will host a series of NGV
seminar/workshops beginning next week in Harrisburg to help municipal and commercial
fleet owners make informed decisions about converting their fleets to CNG and LNG and
thus “prime the pump” for its expected December grant program announcement/RFP. “In
addition to informing local governments and businesses about how they can take advantage
of an abundant, clean-burning and inexpensive fuel found right here in Pennsylvania, the
feedback from these seminars will help us develop our grant program moving forward,”
DEP Secretary Mike Krancer said. “Revenue from the impact fees assessed on
unconventional wells will be used to promote these sorts of fleet conversions.”
Act 13 of 2012 authorized DEP to develop and implement a Natural Gas Energy
Development Program to distribute up to $20 million in grants over the next three years to
help pay for the incremental purchase and conversion costs of natural gas fleet vehicles.
According to PA DEP officials, the proposed grant announcement is likely due out in midlate November.
PA DEP has invited NGVAmerica to present the core curriculum at a number of these
seminars including the following dates/venues:
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 Friday, September 14, at the Radisson Hotel & Conference Center, Camp Hill
(Harrisburg area)
 Tuesday, Oct. 16, at the Bayfront Convention Center in Erie, Erie County;
• Wednesday, Oct. 17, at the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport,
Lycoming County;
 Wednesday, Oct. 24, in Valley Forge, Chester County (location TBD);
 Tuesday, Oct. 30, at the Lackawanna County Center for Public Safety in Jessup; and
To see a complete list of seminar dates and confirmed locations, and to register for any of
the events as an attendee or vendor, visit www.dep.state.pa.us and click on the Natural Gas
Vehicle Grant Program button.
For more information, contact Stephe Yborra at syborra@cleanvehicle.org or 301.829.2520,
or Jeff Clarke at jclarke@ngvamerica.org or 202.824.7364.
CNG Station Opens in Indiana
On Friday, the first CNG station was opened in Montgomery County, Indiana. The station
was the vision of entrepreneurs Carl and Trish Schwabe. The Schwabes converted their 1993
Chevy to truck to run on CNG last year and quickly realized the savings natural gas offered
as a vehicle fuel. They are convinced that demand for CNG will grow in the near term, so
they took the risk of opening their own station. The Sunoco station is located on U.S. 231,
just south of the Interstate 74 interchange. Edwards Heating, a local company in
Waynetown, will convert eight trucks to burn CNG, and the Schwabes believe more fleets in
the area will convert to CNG now that the fuel is readily available. Clean Cities Coalition of
Greater Indiana Coordinator Kellie Walsh will host an informational luncheon on October
30th in Crawfordsville for fleets and individuals interested in moving to NGVs..
Oklahoma Financial Companies Providing NGV Loans
Three Oklahoma-based financial institutions -- Citizens Bank of Edmond, Allegiance Credit
Union and Communication Federal Credit Union -- have launched new loan programs to
help individuals and businesses convert or buy new NGVs. “By converting fleet vehicles to
CNG, businesses of all sizes can have opportunities to reap significant fuel savings,” said Jill
Castilla, Citizens Bank's chief credit officer. “Our program is designed specifically to help
businesses realize the expected financial benefits a CNG fleet can offer.” On the other hand,
Allegiance Credit Union is focused on helping individuals with their NGV purchases. “CNG
conversions offer drivers serious savings and our low-cost signature loans can help
individuals capture those benefits for themselves,” said Laurel Pope, vice president of
corporate development for Allegiance. “We can help our members declare their energy
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9/9/2012
independence from high gasoline prices.” Communication Federal also will help finance new
NGVs, conversions and home-fueling appliances, said Stephen Lark, the credit union's vice
president of marketing and corporate development. Loan rates for new vehicles can be as
low as 1.99 percent.
New Tulsa Public CNG Station Opened
On Friday, in what Mayor Dewey Bartlett called a "gold star day”, Tulsa’s dedicated its first
publicly accessible CNG station. The station, built by Tulsa Gas Technologies, has two
dispensers with two hoses each. CNG at the station is $1.50 per GGE compared to $3.70 for
conventional gasoline. There are more than 70 existing or planned CNG stations in
Oklahoma that are accessible to the public.
EPA Approves Rolls-Royce Marine Natural Gas Engine
EPA has issued a Certificate of Conformity for the natural gas C-engine range from RollsRoyce, which will permit Rolls-Royce to sell these engines in the US for marine applications.
Rolls-Royce states that these natural gas engines will improve fuel efficiency, cut methane
slip emissions and meet strict international environmental standards set to take effect in
2016. These engines are already in operation on car ferries and coastal ferries in Europe, and
are being installed on the world’s first gas-powered tugs to be used in operation for Statoil.
Bolivian NGVs Reach 18 Percent of Market
Figures released by the Bolivian Hydrocarbons Agency (Agencia Nacional de Hidrocarburos
or ANH), indicate more than 18 percent of all vehicles in Bolivia have been retrofitted to run
on natural gas. Since year 2000, when ANH recorded just 6,899 NGVs in the country, the
numbers have increased to 197,405 by this April. Hernán Vega, Executive Director at the
Executive Agency of Natural Gas Conversion for Vehicles (Entidad Ejecutora de
Conversión a Gas Natural Vehicular, or EEC-GNV), reportedly said that 80 percent of all
vehicles in Bolivia are expected to be operating on natural gas by 2025.
The NGVAmerica newsletter is an NGVAmerica member benefit and should only be
distributed to members of NGVAmerica. Redistribution to nonmembers is strictly
prohibited. For more information, contact Rich Kolodziej at 202.824.7366 or
rkoodziej@ngvamerica.org
For comments on the content of this newsletter or for mailing list changes, contact Rich
Kolodziej at rkolodziej@NGVAmerica.org.
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9/9/2012
400 North Capitol St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
Phone: (202) 824-7366 Fax: (202) 824-7087
www.NGVAmerica.org