Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/85684
trucks | by Jeff Crissey Bridging the gap With a growing number of supply options, is now the time to explore alternative-fuel vehicles? America's natural gas highway LNG truck fueling coast-to-coast and border-to-border of vehicle options grows, equip- ment costs drop and diesel prices continue to soar, more fleets are forced to at least consider the op- tion of alternative-fuel options in certain operations. A Clean Energy Fuels, in partnership with Pilot Flying J, has aggressive plans for coast-to-coast deployment of LNG fueling stations. The company hopes to have 70 LNG fueling locations online by the end of the year and complete 150 stations by the end of 2013. doption of alterna- tive-fuel vehicles in trucking has faced some strong head- winds in the last five years. In addition to significantly higher vehicle costs, the nation's fledgling infrastructure – particularly for liquefied natural gas – has held truck owners back from considering such options. As of this May, only a handful of public and private LNG fueling stations are on the national grid. The slow buildout has led to small pockets of North America where LNG trucks can operate in local return-to-base applications, such as the one Southern Counties Express established in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in 2007. In February, North American energy producer Encana opened an LNG fueling station in Frierson, Louisiana, to serve Heckmann Wa- ter Resources, which purchased 200 LNG trucks for use in the hydraulic fracking industry. Meanwhile, nearly every major truck manufacturer now offers at least one LNG-powered truck in its equipment lineup. As the number Incentives also are in the works to spur investment in alternative fuels. President Obama announced plans in March to increase and expand the tax credit for advanced vehicles up to $10,000 to help offset higher equipment acquisition costs. Navistar will provide natural gas-powered International trucks at the same purchase price as a diesel model if a fleet agrees to fuel up at Clean Energy Fuels locations. But in order for LNG trucks to take hold industrywide, a larger rollout of LNG fueling stations is re- quired, particularly for truck owners that operate regionally or nationally. Establishing corridors In recent months, there has been a surge in optimism for a larger network of LNG stations, as col- laboration among truckstops, LNG suppliers and natural gas producers such as Encana and Chesapeake Energy is taking shape. "It has gained much more at- tention with hard assets being deployed," says Mark Hazelwood, executive vice president for Pilot Flying J. "It's been a lot of talk up until this point. Now it's starting to be reality." Shell has announced an LNG pilot program in western Canada, where the company has formed a EquipmentWorld.com | June 2012 39