The Westport WiNG Power system runs CNG in a bi-fuel arrangement and is now offered as an option in Ford F-450 and F-550 super duty chassis cab trucks. It offers a combined fuel range of 650 miles.Big money has teamed up with big energy to bring environmentally conscious diesel truck fleet owners easier access to natural gas trucks.
The GE Capital Transportation Finance team and Clean Energy Fuels have announced a partnership that will help fleet operators obtain a lease/loan from GE Capital and negotiate a fueling agreement from Clean Energy.
Clean Energy will offset the additional cost of buying a natural gas truck by making it consistent with the cost of a diesel truck if the customer makes a fuel commitment.
While the cost of natural gas fuels is lower than diesel, the costs of heavy trucks with natural gas engines is higher, in some cases $10,000 to $30,000 higher. In the GE Capital/Clean Energy arrangement, fleet owners can offset the high capital costs of getting into this market by agreeing to finance through GE and fuel with Clean Energy fueling contracts.
“The alliance will support the parties mutual goal of reducing the financial impact of transitioning to natural gas and lowering the industry’s environmental footprint,” saiys Dan Clark, president and general manager of GE Capital.
There are more than 1,100 natural gas fueling stations in the United States, and about half of those are open to the public, says Clean Energy Fuels. For more information visit www.cleanenergyfuels.com.
