Natural Gas Viable for Truckers?
Posted on Thu, Aug 18, 2011 @ 11:47 AM
Most industries are pretty resistant to change. The trucking industry is no exception. It took years for the new FMCSA safety standards to be implemented and it took close to the same amount of time to get the new Hours of Operations regulations in place. That’s why it came as a slight surprise to see natural gas already playing a part in the trucking industry. Some fleets such as Heckmann and Ryder have ordered 200 LNG-powered trucks each. Also, more and more carriers are buying Natural Gas- (NG) powered trucks as more LNG and CNG fueling stations are opened.
C.R. England is jumping on the wagon along with Heckmann and Ryder. They will take a small, unspecified number of Kenworth trucks to haul for Coca-Cola, said Andy Douglas, Kenworth national sales manager for specialty markets. Kenworth recently hosted a meeting that included 80 companies who are now are seriously interested in updating part of their fleets with the technology, Douglas said. The companies learned more about the truck maker’s lineup of four NG and hybrid truck models. The trucks incorporate either Paccar MX or Westport Innovations engines that burn liquefied or compressed natural gas. The problem with the new technology is that it is 30 to 40 percent more expensive than conventional technology. What NG has going for it is that it is about half the price of diesel and it produces 25 percent less emissions.
If carriers can stomach the upfront costs of NG-powered vehicles there is a bright future for this technology. The U.S. sits above what is largely considered the most bountiful resource of natural gas so to not utilize this would be a crime against our own environment. The wheels are moving on this new technology but unfortunately most NG-powered trucks and fueling stations exist only in California. If it can spread to the rest of the U.S. we can definitely make a difference.