Peterbilt Model 365
Peterbilt Model 384
Peterbilt Motors Company appears set to respond to the recent government funding made available in the US, for ARRA projects, announcing immediate availability of its vocational and aerodynamic vehicles powered by compressed and liquefied natural gas (CNG & LNG). The Model 365 and Model 384 will be offered with the Cummins Westport ISL G and built at Peterbilt’s truck manufacturing facility in Denton, Texas.
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The new Fiat Punto Evo has bi-fuel CNG option
115g/km CO2 – On sale October
Fiat is to debut their Punto Evo at the Frankfurt Motor Show next month, with a bi-fuel (compressed natural gas) CNG Euro 5 option included in the range. The vehicle represents an evolution of the Grande Punto, also available currently with CNG options. The bi-fuel natural gas-gasoline variant produces only 115 g/km of CO2 and Fiat says has ‘record low running costs of under 4 Euros per 100 km’. In Italy, CNG variants also attract the highest government incentives: 5,000 Euros if combined with a contribution for scrapping an older car. The new model goes on sale in the second half of October.
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Almaty, the garden city of Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty, will soon have cleaner air thanks to a Cooperation Agreement between KazTransGas and BG Kazakhstan aimed at converting motor vehicles in the city to compressed natural gas. The pilot project will see the installation of compressor equipment at auto refueling stations to allow use of compressed natural gas as a fuel in motor vehicles. The program, which aims to reduce pollution in the city, will run from 2009 to 2018.
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AGA Gas AB is building what is claimed to be Europe’s first mainland liquid to compressed biogas (LCBG) refuelling station in the city of Sundsvall, Sweden, with Cryostar providing some cryogenic equipment. AGA Gas owns and operates the station which will have a capacity of 530 Nm3/h. Located near a major highway, the station is expected to supply fuel to a large number of vehicles.
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Ho Chi Minh city administration has authorised the Sai Gon Transportation Mechanical Corporation (SAMCO) and the Sai Gon Bus Joint-Stock Company to set up a pilot programme to use CNG fuel for the city’s bus fleet. The programme advances plans first mooted in January 2009, which have progressed slower than expected due to a shortage of capital. It will offer preferential interest rates to transport companies so they can purchase CNG-powered buses.
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Following the successful introduction of its first 100 compressed natural gas buses, launched in 2006, the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) is ready to launch 200 more. The ‘eco-friendly’ buses have been receiving a good response in terms of profits, maintenance and public appreciation according to an Express Buzz report.
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La Strada's Avanti Ecostar - based on the CNG fuelled Fiat Ducato
For the first time at the Caravan Salon in Dusseldorf (29 Aug to 8 Sep) a natural gas powered recreational vehicle, or campervan, has been presented. Added to the Avanti box series by La Strada, the vehicle is based on the Fiat Ducato 3.0 Natural Power 16 V, with power output of 100kW (136 hp). Equipped with five under-floor gas cylinders with a volume of 220 liters (37.4 kg CNG) the vehicle has a range of about 400 kilometers; the reserve of 15 litres should be enough fuel for another 100 kilometers. (Gibgas)
Funding Expected to Result in “Several Hundred Million Dollars of New Investment in NGV Projects”
NGVAmerica offers some insight into the announcement by the U.S Department of Energy’s Clean Cities’ Program on the selection of alternative fuel projects to be funded as part of the $300 million provided in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. NGVAmerica reports that the DOE was limited by law to a selection of only 30 proposals out of the more than 100 submissions requesting funding for alternative fuel vehicles and fueling stations. They selected 25 cost-share projects for awards that ranging from $5,000,000 – $15,000,000. Of the projects awarded funding, 19 include significant investment for NGVs.
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In its second quarter report Changfeng Energy Inc has reported continued advancement with the construction of its first CNG station in Changsha City, Capital of Hunan Province, earlier reported in an NGV Global report in April 2009. An additional 2 stations of the 7 planned for construction are going through the government’s final approval process. The Company has also secured the required gas supply for the first group of stations (11 MM M3 of CNG) and recently has secured an additional 3.56 MM M3 of CNG for the project. Canadian-based Changfeng is engaged in the design and construction of natural gas distribution networks and the distribution of natural gas to commercial and residential customers in the greater Sanya City region of Hainan Province, China.
Gas Equipment Systems, Inc. (GESI), based in Rancho Cucamonga, California, has been successful with winning three contracts for private-access compressed natural gas fueling installations, according to a Fleets & Fuels report. The facilities include an Azusa Unified School District time fill for ten school buses, a City of South Pasadena time fill for ten medium duty city fleet vehicles and a Cathedral City time fill for 12 medium duty city fleet vehicles. The contracts expand GESI’s portfolio of refuelling projects, adding to those reported by NGV Global end of 2008.
2400+ CNG vehicles, 600+ LNG Vehicles, 150+ NG fuelling stations
Industry stocks rise on news
Natural gas vehicle projects feature in 19 of 25 cost-share projects under the Clean Cities program that will be funded with nearly $300 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The projects accounced by Energy Secretary Steven Chu, will speed the transformation of the nation’s vehicle fleet, putting more than 9,000 alternative fuel and energy efficient vehicles on the road, and establishing 542 refueling locations across the country. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) also estimates they will help displace approximately 38 million gallons of petroleum per year.
“We’re very gratified to see NGVs receive so much of the funding,” said Richard Kolodziej, president of NGVAmerica. “The stimulus legislation was intended to fund clean, petroleum-displacing projects with technologies that are here today. The fact that NGVs were included in 19 of the 25 selected projects just shows that the marketplace recognizes that of all the alternative transportation technologies out there, NGVs are the best positioned to have an impact right now.”
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According to Asociación Colombiana de Gas Natural (Naturgas) the number of natural gas vehicles in Colombia grew 13% in 2008, compared to 2007. The total number of vehicles converted to CNG in 2008 was 45,580 vehicles, according to a report by Portofolio. The total number of NGVs nationwide rose to 280,638, third in Latin America after Argentina (1.7 million) and Brazil (1.6 million). The report also cited Naturgas figures of 450 natural gas refueling stations and 510 conversion workshops to support the growing demand.
Vehicle Production Group's prototype - the MV-1 paratransit Taxicab
Prototype Cab May Be Answer
Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert is seeking support for a plan to change over the city’s gasoline-powered taxicab fleet to compressed natural gas. To add incentive for cab owners, it has been proposed that ‘green’ taxis be authorised to jump to the head of the queue at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Joined by T. Boone Pickens (the Pickens Plan creator) outside Dallas City Hall, Leppert and other Councillors were able to examine a prototype cab capable of running 250 miles (over 290 kms) fully fuelled, as reported by The Dallas Morning News. The cab will go into production in 2010.
CSA Standards, a standards developer for gas-fired product and alternative energy standards based in Cleveland, Ohio has had its CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) Fuels System Inspector Program accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Based on the international standard ANSI/ISO/IEC 17024 General requirements for bodies operating certification schemes for persons, it is reportedly the only accredited certification program available in North America for CNG fuel system inspectors.
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SCR Equipped Diesels – An Opportunity for NGVs?
Are natural gas vehicles increasing their role as a simpler, more cost competitive, and more elegant solution?
The increasing complexity of diesel engines is creating opportunities for natural gas vehicles
As diesel powered vehicles face increasingly stringent emissions standards of Euro 5/6 in Europe, and EPA 2010 standards in N. America, more complex engine technology and emissions control systems have been adopted. Particulate emissions have been controlled, in the past, with diesel particulate filters (DPF). Now NOx emissions control for the tighter standards frequently requires a combination of advanced engine control, a DPF, and an emissions control system employing selective catalytic reduction (SCR) with a urea solution injected into the exhaust to control NOxemissions. The cost and complexity of the SCR system has raised the question as to whether, in many cases, natural gas vehicles have become a simpler, more cost competitive, and more elegant solution for meeting the stringent emissions standards imposed on light and heavy duty diesel vehicles.
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