The City of Columbus is gearing up to open the second in a series of compressed natural gas fueling stations in the U.S. state of Ohio’s capital city. The public station is comprised of nine dedicated CNG fueling pumps and will be open to the public once all testing of the facility is complete. The station was financed by a city bond package passed in November of 2013.
According to Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, on hand to celebrate the station dedication, the station’s clientele will include the northern refuse fleet operation, the transportation division, the Department of Public Utilities, and other city fleet vehicles.
Located on Morse Road, the new station is the second step in a 10-year plan to promote CNG use and allow for adequate fueling sites in central Ohio. Preliminary designs for a third station, which will be located on the west side of the city, are currently underway.
“At one time there was a gas station on every corner in America. In the future, there may be a CNG station on the corner of every street in Columbus. Imagine what that would do for our economy,” said Coleman.
“By building this station we are lowering the amount of harmful pollutants in the air, reducing our dependence on foreign oil and also creating jobs in Ohio. This station represents a $6.4 investment into this community which includes equipment made in this state – like the Ariel compressors that are made right here in Ohio,” said Councilwoman Priscilla Tyson at the station dedication.
The station utilizes three Ariel JGQ, two-throw, four-stage reciprocating compressors, designed by the company for CNG fleets with numerous standardized compression units. The 280 BHP (209 kW) JGQ/2 produces 11,000 LBF (48,930 N). Refuelling equipment is manufactured by ANGI Energy Systems.
Columbus opened its first CNG fueling station on the east side in 2012, and has saved taxpayers over $600,000 in fuel costs for the city’s CNG fleet. About 40 percent of the fuel pumped has been sold for private vehicles. By 2020, the city will have 440 CNG vehicles in this fleet, which is estimated to save the city around $1.9 million per year in fuel costs.
(Source: Ariel Corporation)
