In the United States (US), Clean Energy Fuels Corporation (Clean Energy) has announced additional fuel and infrastructure contracts to meet the growing demand for renewable natural gas (RNG), a sustainable fuel that, the company says, "provides an immediate and significant carbon reduction in transportation."
In the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California (CA), Clean Energy’s “Adopt-a-Port” program with Chevron continues to gain momentum, with more fleets switching to RNG. Chevron has committed to providing a total of US$28 million of financing to trucking companies serving the ports region as well as owner-operators to purchase new RNG heavy-duty trucks.
So far, over 200 heavy-duty trucks have been contracted through the program and over 400 more are being processed, which will help to clean the air in and around the ports and significantly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
A leader in the move to meet clean air standards in California, Pacific Green Trucking continues to expand its clean fleet in the port region, signing a fueling agreement with Clean Energy for an estimated 1 million (US) gallons (≈ 3.78 million litres) of RNG to power 61 new natural gas trucks.
Reducing our carbon emissions and improving air quality near the ports is a top priority for Pacific Green and we’re doing it one truck at a time. RNG is the most immediate and cost-efficient way to make the necessary environmental changes for the trucking industry, said Vicente Zarate, President, Pacific Green Trucking.
Also deploying another 46 RNG-fueled trucks through the Adopt-a-Port program are NGL Logistics, TDS Logistics, Mortimer & Wallace, Pacific 9, Cota Capital American Pacific Forwarders, Arete Logistics, Paul Suh, Sang’s Express, Pacifica Trucks, Pacific Expressway, Yanxiu Li, IML Transport, Supra National Express, and Atlas Marine.
Renewable natural gas creates a pathway for our customers to dramatically reduce their carbon emissions and turn their sustainability goals into reality. As the demand for RNG accelerates, more clean natural gas trucks are hitting the roads in the Port of Los Angeles and elsewhere, and we’ll be there to provide both the fuel and infrastructure to help fleets realize immediate and significant carbon reduction, said Chad Lindholm, VP of Clean Energy.
RNG expansion projects in California
Republic Services has signed an agreement with Clean Energy for an expansion project in Huntington Beach. The first phase includes expanding an existing RNG fueling station to accommodate more refuse vehicles, as well as adding new fast-fill capabilities for their growing private fleet and transfer truck operations.
In the second phase of the expansion, Clean Energy will construct a new station at an adjacent address to fuel 30 additional RNG trucks.
In addition to these projects, Clean Energy has been contracted for a major expansion of the Republic Services RNG fueling facility in Anaheim, which will provide 52 additional fueling bays for refuse trucks.
Harrison Industries in Ventura has signed an agreement for a station upgrade and fueling contract for an anticipated seven million gallons (≈ 26.5 million litres) of RNG to fuel 80 natural gas solid waste trucks.
Golden Empire Transit in Bakersfield has signed a maintenance agreement with Clean Energy for its fueling station, which will provide an expected 2 million gallons (≈ 7.57 million litres) of RNG during the term to power over 100 transit buses.
Clean Energy has signed an agreement with MV Transit in Long Beach for an anticipated 700 000 gallons (≈ 2.65 million litres) of RNG to fuel municipal buses.
The County of Sacramento has signed a maintenance contract for an expected 900 000 gallons (≈ 3.4 million lires) of compressed natural gas (CNG) to fuel 50 refuse trucks.
CNG agreements outside of California
Outside of California, the City of Tacoma, Washington (WA) has signed a maintenance agreement with Clean Energy for an estimated 700 000 gallons (≈2.65 million litres) of CNG to fuel 50 waste trucks.
Also on the West Coast, Salem Area Mass Transit District (SAMTD) in Oregon (OR), which has operated natural gas buses for more than 20 years, has signed a US$1.6 million contract with Clean Energy for a station upgrade to accommodate its 64 transit buses.
Likewise, the company continues its historic partnership with Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) in Dallas, Texas (TX), signing a maintenance agreement for the transit agency’s stations for approximately 27 million gallons (≈ 1.02 billion litres) of natural gas which serves 700 transit buses.
Also in Dallas, Green Path Logistics, a large nationwide carrier has signed a fueling agreement with Clean Energy in Dallas for 900 000 gallons (≈ 3.4 million litres) of fuel for its fleet of 100 heavy-duty trucks while the City of Temple has inked a maintenance contract with Clean Energy for its station with an expected 576 000 gallons (≈ 2.18 million litres) of fuel over the term for 30 sanitation trucks.
In the Midwest, the Portage Area Regional Transportation Authority (PARTA) in Ohio (OH) is continuing to add CNG vehicles to its fleet.
We’re excited to be able to provide this new transportation option for our riders. These vehicles combine the character of early 20th century trolleys with leading-edge green technology. The fact that PARTA’s new trolley buses are powered by CNG fuel moves us closer to our goal of lowering our carbon footprint. That’s a win for our riders, PARTA, and the wider community, said Claudia Amrhein, General Manager and CEO at PARTA.
On the East Coast, Blue Diamond Disposal refuse, and recycling company located in Mount Arlington, New Jersey (NJ) has renewed a maintenance agreement with Clean Energy. The station will dispense an expected 2.5 million gallons (≈ 9.5 million litres) of CNG during the term to fuel 50 refuse trucks.
Also in NJ, the Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA) has signed a contract with Clean Energy to continue maintenance services for the Egg Harbor Township refuse and recycling company. The station will provide an anticipated 1.6 million gallons (≈ 6 million litres) of CNG to fuel 58 refuse trucks over the contract term.
Atlantic City Jitney Association, which operates shuttle buses out of Egg Harbor Township, has extended its contract for an estimated 900 000 gallons (≈ 3.4 million litres) of CNG to power its fleet.
In Canada, the City of London, Ontario (ON), has inked a fueling agreement with Clean Energy for an expected 476 000 gallons (≈ 1.8 million litres) of fuel for 28 refuse trucks.
The City has been operating six CNG-powered refuse trucks for more than a year at the London Flying J truck stop and has added the 28 new trucks to support the City’s new “Green Bin” program expansion.