NGVAmerica News Week in Review: July 5, 2017

• Valley Metro to Deploy Large CNG Bus Fleet in Phoenix
• PG&E Delivers $4 million in Rebates to Customers Using CNG
• UPS Commits to More Natural Gas Vehicles, Fuel by 2025
• Cummins Westport Introduces Natural Gas Playbook Website
• New Canadian Report Highlights Benefits of Natural Gas as a Marine Fuel
• ExxonMobil, Eagle LNG Partners and Crowley to Develop LNG Marine Fuel

Valley Metro to Deploy Large CNG Bus Fleet in Phoenix

July 3, 2017

Over the next few years, Valley Metro will be deploying a new bus fleet to serve bus routes in Phoenix, Arizona. A five-year base quantity of 187 buses will include 30-foot CNG, 40-foot CNG and diesel and 60-foot CNG powered buses. There is also an option to purchase up to another 109 heavy duty buses. The purchase is part of a joint regional procurement with the city of Phoenix, which allows a five-year regional acquisition.

“Replacing older fleet is key to keeping our service efficient and more comfortable for our riders,” said Scott Smith, Valley Metro CEO. “With new technology and aerodynamic styling, we believe we can attract a new generation of riders to public transit.”

At their June meeting, the Valley Metro Board of Directors gave the approval to execute contracts with El Dorado National Inc. and New Flyer of America Inc. for the manufacture and delivery of the new fleet vehicles. Total cost of the purchase is $169.7 million. All vehicles are funded by Federal Transit Administration and Proposition 400 funds. Proposition 400 is a half-cent sales tax that funds the Regional Transportation Plan in Maricopa County, which was approved by voters in 2004.

PG&E Delivers $4 million in Rebates to Customers Using CNG

June 28, 2017

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) launched a new Clean Fuel Rebate program for customers driving vehicles using clean-burning CNG as a  as a clean transportation fuel. The new rebate is part of California’s statewide Low Carbon Fuel Standard initiative, which aims to reduce transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging the adoption of clean fuels like CNG. Transportation is the single largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in California at 40 percent.

“Clean fuel vehicles are a critical part of creating cleaner air and meeting our ambitious climate goals in California,” said Aaron Johnson, PG&E Vice President of Customer Energy Solutions. “Providing this rebate for natural gas vehicles is part of our ongoing commitment to clean transportation. We continue to support our customers who are adopting clean fuels to reduce their environmental impact and move towards the state’s clean energy future.”

The Clean Fuel Rebate for compressed natural gas is a program for customers who have a compressed natural gas account and fuel their vehicles at PG&E stations across Northern and Central California. The first rebate will be issued in 2017 and is expected to be an annual rebate through 2020.

The rebate amount varies for each customer as it is based on the customer’s consumption of compressed natural gas from one of PG&E’s fueling stations during a certain time period. The 2017 rebate will be larger than future rebate amounts as it retroactively accounts for customer usage for a period of five years from January 1, 2011 through September 30, 2016. In subsequent years, the rebate will cover one year of usage.

For more information on the Clean Fuel Rebate for CNG, visit pge.com/cleanfuelrebate-cng.

UPS Commits to More Natural Gas Vehicles, Fuel by 2025

June 29, 2017

UPS announced aggressive new sustainability goals to add more natural gas and other alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles to its fleet. The goal, available in the company’s 2016 Corporate Sustainability Report, supports UPS’s commitment to reduce its absolute greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from global ground operations 12 percent by 2025.

“Because of our size and scale, we know our commitments can shape markets, advance technologies and be a catalyst for infrastructure investments,” said David Abney, UPS Chairman and CEO. “We rely on the ingenuity of our employees, suppliers and technology partners to help us reach goals that will transform the shipping industry and spur innovation.”

By 2020 UPS plans that one in four new vehicles purchased annually will be an alternative fuel or advanced technology vehicle, up from 16 percent in 2016. The company also set a new goal that by 2025, 40 percent of all ground fuel will be from sources other than conventional gasoline and diesel, an increase from 19.6 percent in 2016.

UPS operates more than 8,300 alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles worldwide, and in addition to its use of alternative vehicles, UPS uses millions of gallons of lower-carbon footprint renewable natural gas (RNG) in its fleet each year.

Since 2009, UPS has invested more than $750 million in alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles and fueling stations globally. The company used more than 97 million gallons of alternative and lower-carbon fuels in its ground fleet in 2016.

Cummins Westport Introduces Natural Gas Playbook Website

June 27, 2017

Cummins Westport Inc. (CWI) has introduced The Natural Gas Playbook website designed to provide new and existing natural gas customers with guidance on evaluating and operating Cummins Westport powered natural gas vehicles.

Located at www.cwiplaybook.com, the five step Natural Gas Playbook features information and tips on how to Assess, Specify, Prepare, Implement, and Operate/Maintain a Cummins Westport powered natural gas fleet, and it provides information to users who have questions about operating natural gas vehicles.

In addition to tips and tools about CWI products, the Playbook also provides the opportunity to connect with Cummins and Cummins Westport experts to answer questions and support the successful adoption of natural gas into truck, refuse, school bus, and transit applications.

To further assist customers, the Playbook offers two new calculators—a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Calculator and a Payback Calculator. The easy-to-use GHG calculator is based on three published North American Well-to-Wheel GHG Models: GREET, GREET California, and GHGenius. It provides the carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq) WTW emission reductions possible with the use of natural gas or renewable natural gas in a variety of applications.

The Payback Calculator is a tool to calculate fuel savings, average fleet speed, service intervals, and fuel system capacity requirements.

New Canadian Report Highlights Benefits of Natural Gas as a Marine Fuel

June 27, 2017

A new report released today by the Canadian Natural Gas Vehicle Alliance (CNGVA) says major economic benefits and emissions reductions can occur by expanding the use of natural gas as a marine fuel on Canada’s Great Lakes and East Coast.

Liquefied Natural Gas: A Marine Fuel for Canada’s Great Lakes and East Coast is a summary report of an in-depth study undertaken in partnership with Transport Canada and with the support of a broad cross section of industry, government and other stakeholders.  The report concludes that using LNG and CNG as a marine fuel will provide significant economic benefits to the owners and operators of vessels, especially coastal vessels. In addition, the report notes that natural gas is a clean energy option that offers a means of reducing emissions to meet current and pending environmental regulations.

“With the arrival of LNG powered ferries in eastern and western Canada, this promising clean and affordable marine fuel has begun to gain a toe hold in Canada,” said Bruce Winchester, Executive Director of Canadian Natural Gas Vehicle Alliance. “Ongoing collaboration remains essential to clearing the regulatory path to ensure that Canada’s abundant natural gas resources can be more widely used in the marine sector.”

The report concludes that under a “medium” adoption scenario:

• 148 LNG vessels could be operating on the Great Lakes and East Coast, requiring 783,000 metric tons of LNG annually provided through Canadian port facilities in 2025.
• Vessel owners may see annual fuel cost savings of 25 to 50 per cent in 2025.
• Significant emissions reductions in 2025:
  • 880,000 tons/year in CO2e emissions
  • 37,100 tons/year in sulphur oxides
  • 19,600 tons/year in nitrogen oxides
  • 6,100 tons/year in particulate matter

Several barriers to greater adoption of natural gas are outlined including LNG and CNG production and distribution capacity, human resources needs, and unfamiliarity with the technology and fuel. The report makes several recommendations to address these barriers.

ExxonMobil, Eagle LNG Partners and Crowley to Develop LNG Marine Fuel

June 28, 2017

ExxonMobil, Eagle LNG Partners and Crowley have signed an agreement to collaborate on the development of LNG as a marine fuel. The goal is to establish the storage and technical support necessary to provide safe, reliable LNG delivery for vessel operators bunkering in North America.

The three companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), and the parties will initially focus their efforts in Florida before expanding to other North American markets.

ExxonMobil will provide its technical support and expertise to help the parties carry out safe bunkering operations and sell LNG bunker fuel to vessel operators. Eagle LNG Partners will supply the LNG and will design, build and operate small-scale production and storage facilities as well as coordinate land-based LNG transportation. Crowley will provide bunker logistics and ensure safe and reliable operations.

“The Memorandum of Understanding is another major step forward in developing LNG as a marine fuel,” said Luca Volta, LNG Venture Manager at ExxonMobil. “This agreement provides additional opportunities for vessel operators looking to adopt LNG as a marine fuel.”

The decision by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to introduce a global 0.50 percent sulfur cap on vessel emissions in 2020 will impact bunker fuel selection. The parties believe that the marine industry is heading for a multi-fuel future that will include low-sulphur options, with LNG an important part of that mix.