Colorado Producers Turning to NGVs
52 pickup conversions first step
10% of fleet targeted
Big oil and gas companies in the US are increasingly burning natural gas in some of their fleet cars and pickups to demonstrate its effectiveness as an alternative motor fuel, in particular Denver’s EnCana Oil and Gas and Texan company Pioneer Natural Resources.
Randy Eresman, EnCana’s President & Chief Executive Officer said in a company press release, “Looking ahead, we strongly believe there are tremendous opportunities for expanding the use of clean-burning natural gas to help solve some of our continent’s most pressing energy, environmental and economic challenges. A number of respected geological authorities have recently confirmed the abundant nature of North American natural gas. This abundance will help ensure an affordable future for expanding natural gas in our economy, primarily by displacing foreign oil in transportation and by fuelling electricity generation. While the use of natural gas as a convenient and economic transportation fuel for trucks and cars is not common in North America, it is in wide use on other continents. As a step in that direction, EnCana has started to convert a portion of its vehicle fleet to run on natural gas in select Canadian and U.S. operating locations.”
Encana recently converted four bi-fuel Ford F-250 pickups, which the company bought for the Denver-Julesburg basin north of Denver. The company plans to convert its 52 trucks in the area to bi-fuel capability by 2011. EnCana also has purchased seven Honda Civic GXs for its employees in Colorado, Wyoming and Texas to use on the job.
The Aspen Times reports Encana’s David Hill, who is leading the conversion program, said that about 30 percent of the company’s fleet in the “Southern Rockies” region, and 10 percent of its entire U.S. fleet, will be converted. Hill commented that increased investment in new fuelling facilities will encourage other companies to move to natural gas and enable Encana to expand its natural gas-powered fleet.
Pioneer Natural Resources, based in Irving, Texas, last winter converted 25 Ford F-250s it runs in southern Colorado’s Raton Basin to bi-fuel operation. In February, the company installed a refueling station for the vehicles.
Meanwhile, the Governor’s Energy Office has applied for a $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s share of the federal stimulus package to help pay for a $27.6 million NGV project. The money would be spent on 68 trash trucks, buses and other heavy-duty NGVs, and building five new natural gas refueling stations across Colorado. Colorado has 18 public natural gas fueling stations — 12 in the Denver area — selling CNG for as low as 80 cents per GGE (gasoline gallon equialent).
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