The Transport Project Presents 2026 NGV Achievement Awards at Annual Industry Summit

Nashville, TN – Eight individuals and organizations were honored today by The Transport Project (TTP) at its annual industry summit for their outstanding contributions toward the advancement of renewable natural gas as a transportation fuel.

The Transport Project Achievement Awards are awarded to nominees from all stakeholder segments, including but not limited to: TTP industry equipment and service suppliers, policymakers, customers, and clean air/clean transportation advocates.

“We are proud to award these hardworking individuals and organizations for the work that they do and the communities they serve,” said TTP President Dan Gage. “Because of their contributions, we are making communities healthier with fewer emissions through the increased use of domestic, affordable, carbon-negative renewable natural gas as a transportation fuel.”

The 2026 TTP Achievement Award recipients are:

Gazelle Transportation, LLC Natural Gas Fleet Program
Giant Eagle/Talon Logistics Natural Gas Fleet Program
Certarus Ltd. RNG Innovation & Impact
Sagepoint Energy, LLC RNG Innovation & Impact
Eddie Murray NGV Market Development Leadership
Chip Wertz Exemplary NGV Industry Leadership
Marianne Mintz Lifetime Achievement Award
Jeffrey Clarke Lifetime Achievement Award

TTP26, The Transport Project’s 2026 Industry Summit, continues through July 9^th at The Westin Nashville in Nashville, Tennessee.

ABOUT OUR AWARDEES:
Gazelle Transportation, LLC., Natural Gas Fleet Program
Gazelle Transportation based in Bakersfield, California, is leading the shift from diesel to compressed natural gas with decisive, forward-looking action. As an oil and gas service company, Gazelle believes wholeheartedly that responsible oil and gas production is vital today and is leading by example by expanding a near-zero-emissions CNG fleet. With a heightened awareness of its responsibility to both customers and the environment, Gazelle Transportation is reducing emissions, lowering fuel costs, and addressing some of the industry’s most pressing environmental challenges while maintaining the performance and reliability required for demanding operations. Gazelle began its CNG transition with seven trucks in 2019. Within 90 days, drivers were fully comfortable with the technology. By 2025, Gazelle’s CNG fleet grew to 23 trucks, supported by high-powered natural gas technology and expanded fueling infrastructure. The fleet is reducing lifecycle carbon emissions while achieving up to 50 percent fuel cost savings on select routes – turning sustainability into a clear operational and business advantage. Gazelle will continue replacing diesel-powered trucks with CNG across its fleet in 2026 and beyond.

Giant Eagle/Talon Logistics, Natural Gas Fleet Program
Giant Eagle is a family-owned grocery store chain that opened in 1931 in Pittsburgh, PA. It has grown to 211 supermarkets across PA, MD, WV, OH, and IN. It operates over 200 tractors and over 650 refrigerated trailers under its Talon Logistics division. Giant Eagle’s CNG journey began in late 2007 when one of the principal owners went on a business trip to India and learned of the successful impact natural gas motor fuel was having on that country’s efforts to improve air quality. Upon return, the company started meeting with state and local government officials to discuss its plan and seek support. It then partnered with an outside company to assist in applying for available grants for infrastructure and trucks. In 2009 Giant Eagle designed and built its first compressor station, fast fill dispensers, and public CNG station In Pittsburgh. In 2010 it ordered its first ten trucks and equipped its facilities – installing methane detection alarms and emergency ventilation systems in its shops. Then Giant Eagle trained its staff in CNG vehicle safety best practices. In 2011, Giant Eagle built its second fueling operation in Cleveland and ordered ten additional trucks. Through the 2010s Giant Eagle continued to increase its CNG fleet size reaching 71 percent CNG powered fleet in 2019. Supply chain issues during COVID impacted its vehicle replacement plans. Today Giant Eagle is at 40 percent CNG power with plans to jump back over 70 percent as it introduces the Cummins X15N engine into the fleet. Giant Eagle has been acknowledged for its commitment to sustainability through various awards. Notably, it was recognized as one of the 10 Most Sustainable Grocers by Progressive Grocer and received the 2023 EPA ENERGY STAR Retail Partner of the Year Award. Late last month Kroger announced it would acquire the popular grocery and pharmacy retailer in a $1.65 billion deal.

Certarus Ltd., RNG Innovation & Impact Award
Certarus expands natural gas motor fueling infrastructure by delivering CNG, RNG, and hydrogen without requiring fixed pipelines or stations, allowing fleets to deploy natural gas vehicles for any application and in any setting – including in underserved corridors. Their process removes significant infrastructure CAPEX constraints. Today Certarus delivers 230+ million DGE annually and operates the largest mobile CNG trailer fleet in North America with 19.9 million miles driven per year. Certarus was among the very first to deploy and scale a virtual pipeline model, building an energy-as-a-service model and shifting fuel from a product to a managed service creating lower barriers to entry and faster adoption for fleets versus a build-your-own infrastructure model. Certarus operates a safety-first, sustainability-driven business model that creates value for customers, communities, and the environment—while maintaining high standards of transparency, governance, and operational integrity.

Sagepoint Energy, LLC, RNG Innovation & Impact Award
Sagepoint Energy and its subsidiary Sagepoint Logistics recently acquired 60 heavy-duty RNG fueled Freightliner trucks powered by the Cummins X15N engine. The Carmel, Indiana-based company says the move represents a “significant leap forward” in its mission to propel the circular economy by aggressively expanding its footprint in the for-hire dedicated carrier market. With three landfill RNG operations and a dairy RNG facility capable of producing over 1.5 billion cubic feet of pipeline quality gas, complementing this effort, the launch of Sagepoint Logistics is translating RNG availability into impactful fleet operations. By integrating natural gas-powered vehicles into demanding freight applications, Sagepoint will prove that RNG fueled trucking delivers the range, performance, and uptime required for modern logistics networks. And their adoption of advanced natural gas engines capable of very low emissions and optimized for renewable fuel use demonstrates that sustainability and operational efficiency are not mutually exclusive. Their commitment to reliable RNG sourcing provides fleets with confidence that sustainability targets can be met without compromising fueling consistency or cost predictability.

Eddie Murray, NGV Market Development Leadership Award
Eddie Murray is a consistent and tireless advocate for the natural gas transportation industry. Over a decade with Freedom CNG – the company that in 2025 combined with X3CNG, Lancer, and Comtech to form Freedom AFI – Eddie has been a driving force behind the growth of compressed and renewable natural gas fueling in the Greater Houston area, one of the nation’s most important and emissions-challenged freight corridors. Promoted to Director of Business Development in 2016, he brought more than thirty years of sales, marketing, and logistics experience to Freedom, including prior work at Southwestern Energy developing CNG markets for municipalities and transportation companies across Texas and Arkansas. At Freedom CNG he turned that experience into real adoption, expanding the company’s customer base and establishing its stations as reliable anchors for public and private fleets. Eddie helped establish Freedom CNG as a trusted fueling partner for public transit in Houston, including METRO’s CNG bus fleet. He likewise brought numerous commercial fleets across the Houston region onto natural gas, spanning food and beverage distribution, freight, and other sectors, converting diesel operations to cleaner CNG and RNG. Through sustained, relationship-driven outreach and a near-constant personable social media presence, he introduced new fuel users to existing stations and helped grow station throughput across the Houston network. His willingness to meet fleets where they were, and to keep showing up, turned cautious prospects into long-term natural gas users. Eddie has also given his time and energy to the broader movement, working on TTP initiatives and serving on the American Natural Gas Association’s Transportation and Equipment subcommittee, the Greater Houston Natural Gas Vehicle Alliance membership committee and Houston Galveston Clean Cities Coalition, remaining a visible, tireless advocate for the industry.

Chip Wertz, Exemplary NGV Industry Leadership Award
Chip Wertz recently retired after almost forty-two years with WM, the largest waste and environmental services company in the United States. WM serves approximately 21 million customers across North America using the industry’s largest CNG truck fleet and an expansive network of hundreds of landfills and recycling plants. Serving first as a Construction Manager, Chip retired as Director of WM Fleet Services’ Infrastructure Team. Throughout his WM tenure, Chip developed the company’s alternative fuel fueling infrastructure as it transitioned from diesel to clean burning renewable natural gas in its fleet of 18,000+ collection vehicles. Our entire industry has benefitted from Chip’s learned experience, knowledge, and expertise. He served on countless TTP committees and works groups over the years to develop clear, consistent, safety-focused best practices, codes & standards, and guidelines to lift the entire CNG transportation industry.

Marianne Mintz, Lifetime Achievement Award
Marianne Mintz is a Principal Analyst at Argonne National Laboratory, who supports the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Clean Cities and Communities partnership in renewable natural gas and technoeconomic analysis of natural gas fueling infrastructure. Her career at Argonne spans 49 years, with more than 15 years supporting Clean Cities. She serves as the lead subject matter expert in RNG across DOE’s national laboratory complex. In 2017 Ms. Mintz led the development of a national database of planned and operational RNG production facilities based on all feedstocks and is exclusive for transportation fuels. This database is annually updated and shows market trends by state and nationally in the growth of RNG and its feedstocks. It is used by industry, Clean Cities coalitions, policymakers, academics, and local planners. She also leads a monthly RNG working group for the coalitions, providing timely industry and policy updates, production trends, environmental impacts and other issues. Marianne has supported coalitions’ local events and presented at national training workshops and webinars on RNG, providing greater awareness of RNG and its attributes. Ms. Mintz communicates with clarity on complex issues, such as the carbon intensity scores of the various feedstock based on Argonne’s life cycle analysis model, GREET. She works directly with TTP to assess the percentage of RNG dispensed versus fossil natural gas in deployed CNG vehicles. Not only does she work with DOE and its stakeholders, but she has also supported the research and programs at the Energy Information Administration and U.S. EPA. She is the author of several RNG case studies, the RNG FAQ fact sheet, and is a co-author of an accepted 2026 Transportation Research Board paper, “Opportunities and Impacts of Renewable Natural Gas in Long-Haul and Refuse Trucking Fleets.” Ms. Mintz is also an expert in technoeconomic analysis in natural gas vehicle refueling, having created the JOBS NG tool, which is part of a suite of tools that estimate the economic impacts resulting from the development, installation and utilization of natural gas stations.

Jeffrey Clarke, Lifetime Achievement Award
Jeffrey Clarke has dedicated his entire career to the advancement of natural gas. Son of a gas utility executive, Jeff graduated from James Madison University in 1986 and went to work for Raytheon as a contractor at the Goddard Space Flight Center before attending the University of Baltimore Law School. During law school summers and sometimes during term, Jeff interned at the American Gas Association (AGA). One summer Jeff even worked on a gas pipe installation crew expanding the LDC network in the quickly growing Northern Virginia suburbs. After graduating law school, gaining admission to the Maryland bar, and clerking in the Prince George’s County Circuit Court, Jeff joined AGA’s Office of Government Relations Counsel doing regulatory work in 1992. Four years later, Jeff joined the relatively new Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition (NGVC) as Director of Regulatory Affairs. In 2001, Jeff moved to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) supporting alternative fuel vehicle programs and DOE’s EERE office before returning to NGVC – then known as NGVAmerica – in 2006 as General Counsel and Director of Regulatory Affairs. Over the last twenty years, Jeff has advanced TTP’s regulatory and government affairs priorities at the federal and state levels. There are few alternative fuel vehicle and fuel standards, policies, or programs that Jeff does not have significant knowledge of and has not contributed to their development and implementation. Among multiple CNG/RNG motor fuel industry issues, Jeff is an authority on emissions calculations and the GREET model, weight allowances, clean fuel standards, and the renewable fuel standard program. A treasure trove of knowledge and experience, Jeff retired earlier this year as TTP’s Vice President of Government and Regulatory Affairs. He continues his service as TTP’s General Counsel and outside consultant.

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The Transport Project is a national coalition of roughly 200 fleets, vehicle and engine manufacturers and dealers, servicers and suppliers, and fuel producers and providers dedicated to the decarbonization of North America’s transportation sector. Through the increased use of gaseous motor fuels including renewable natural gas and hydrogen, the United States and Canada can help achieve ambitious climate goals and greatly improve air quality safely, reliably, and effectively without delay and without compromising existing commercial business operations. Find out more at: transportproject.org.