Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the American Trucking Association Summit on Natural Gas in Trucking in Washington D.C. Topics ranged from Natural Gas 101 to The Politics of Natural Gas. This particular conference was focused on the trucking industry and it was a packed house, full of regional and national truckers, natural gas companies such as ConocoPhillips and other companies that service the industry.

We heard from gas station owners and developers such as Frank Love of Love’s Travel Stops and James A. Haslam III, the Chairman of Pilot Flying J. They spoke about the benefits and challenges of natural gas from an infrastructure standpoint.  Gas station owners are actively looking at natural gas in LNG(Liquefied Natural Gas) and CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) forms as a viable fuel ,but believe that demand and economics will drive the change.

The clear star of the show was Mr. T. Boone Pickens. Mr. Pickens, or as he asked me to call him later, T. Boone, spoke at the conference and gave a brilliant and candid perspective on the natural gas revolution. T. Boone has championed the effort behind the natural gas boom with the Pickens Plan and has invested millions of dollars in Clean Energy. Clean Energy is the leading provider of CNG and LNG in the United States.

It took diesel fuel 30 years to be adopted by this industry after WWII. So as the CNG Revolution continues, how long do you think it will take this industry to adopt natural gas?

Exciting news in the CNG world this week as Clean Energy and Honda are teaming up to bring natural gas vehicles to the market in our home state of Georgia. Last week, the two companies announced they will be offering a $3,000 fuel card at any of Clean Energy’s compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations for anyone who purchases a 2012 Honda Civic Natural Gas Vehicle. With CNG prices hovering around $2.30 a gasoline gallon equivalent (GGE), $3,000 dollars will provide enough CNG to drive 40,000 miles, based on Honda’s 27 miles / GGE City and 38 miles / GGE HWY fuel economy ratings.

On October 17^th, Clean Energy, PS Energy and Clean Cities Atlanta opened Georgia’s 7^th CNG facility, located on Whitehall Street in the heart of downtown Atlanta. Clean Energy is continuing to help fuel the CNG Revolution. The recent improvements in CNG infrastructure in Georgia, along with incentives from companies like Honda, will continue to make CNG attractive and viable.

Gas South is excited about these opportunities around Georgia and will continue to keep you informed of developments in the promising CNG Revolution. If you have any questions regarding this program or other questions on CNG in general, please comment below or email me at CNG@gas-south.com.

Does a $3,000 fuel card make purchasing a natural gas vehicle more practical for you?

This week, Gas South had the opportunity to attend the opening of two new compressed natural gas (CNG) facilities right here in Georgia; the DeKalb County Station at Seminole Landfill and American Fueling Systems (AFS) station off of Buford Highway. These stations, along with other public and private locations in Georgia are the reasons why our state is continuing to lead the southeast in the field of alternative fuels. The development of CNG stations around the state have been facilitated by initiatives like Atlanta Gas Light’s (AGL) CNG Infrastructure program and public/private partnerships such as AFS’s fueling station in DeKalb will be on the leading edge of the CNG revolution. This revolution has huge local and global implications that could impact the fueling, automotive and the political landscape of our state and country. Learn more about alternative fuels in Georgia at Clean Cities Atlanta and CNG Now.

CNG or compressed natural gas is a readily available alternative fuel that is made by compressing natural gas to less than 1% of its volume at standard atmospheric pressure. CNG can then be used to fuel automobiles ranging from your personal car to dump trucks. At the moment large companies such as UPS and municipalities like DeKalb County are benefitting from savings of almost a $1.50 a gallon and switching their fleets, buses, and vehicles to CNG. Currently, Atlanta Gas Light (AGL) has a leasing program that allows residents to rent a device that refuels your CNG vehicles in the convenience of your garage. To get more information regarding CNG in Georgia, feel free to comment below or email me at CNG@Gas-South.com.

So what would it take for you to buy a CNG car and be part of the CNG revolution?