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Compressed Natural Gas Facility

Stimulus fund grants helped update City’s fueling station

 (Laredo, TX)  The City of Laredo was awarded $924,000 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds through the State Energy Conservation Office (SECO) for the upgrade of its existing Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) refueling facility.  Laredo now joins the ranks of Austin, Beaumont, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso and Ft. Worth of municipalities moving to the safer, cheaper and more abundantly available compressed natural gas fueling stations for its various fleet vehicles.  Additionally, this facility will also be available for use by the public, either personal vehicles or other company fleets, to fill up their CNG vehicles with gas purchased at this station.

 Compressed natural gas is used in thousands of vehicles worldwide primarily due to its lower cost and the fact that it generates fewer exhaust and greenhouse gas emissions than gasoline or diesel-powered vehicles. Natural gas is mostly methane, about 95 percent.  The other five percent is made up of various gases along with small amounts of water vapor.  These other gases include butane, propane, ethane and other trace gases.  Methane is a hydrocarbon, meaning its molecules are made up of hydrogen and carbon atoms.

 “Natural gas is one of the most common forms of energy used today,” said City of Laredo Mayor  Pro Tempore Johnny Rendon.  “Overall, the benefits of using CNG include lower fuel costs, increased performance and dramatic emissions reductions.  With the high costs of fuel, this is an important project that will save money not only for the City of Laredo, but the taxpayers, as well.”

 The cost for one gallon of CNG is currently over $2.00 less per gallon than diesel fuel.  In conjunction with the increased performance experienced by CNG vehicles, operators get a longer lasting, lower operating cost vehicles.  In on-road, heavy-duty trucks, refuse vehicles and transit buses, CNG is the most prominent and widely used alternative to conventional diesel fuel.

 Because CNG is also cleaner than gasoline or diesel, it is safer for drivers and passengers with higher flash points and explosive limits.  Additionally, methane does not pool and will not pollute ground water.  

 The upgrade was necessary as the previous City of Laredo CNG fueling station was slow and often, not working.  The new station has the capability of fueling up to 15 CNG transit buses (50 gallons each) twice a day with no degradation in time or functionality when compared to normal diesel fueling.  For the City of Laredo and other municipalities, the possibilities for fleets of vehicles utilizing CNG include:  transit buses; refuse haulers; street sweepers; dump trucks; miscellaneous heavy-duty vehicles; Honda Civic GX & light-duty conversions. 

 Currently, the City of Laredo has a fleet of 63 vehicles that utilize CNG; 32 of those are El Metro buses.  The rest are made up of cars and trucks from various City departments.  According to Jack Dunn, Fleet Manager for the City of Laredo, for future vehicle purchases, whenever possible, the recommendation to the departments will be for CNG vehicles. 

 “We at CenterPoint Energy are proud to work with the City of Laredo on this project,” stated Nelda Juarez, South Texas District Director. “Working together, we can have more natural gas vehicles on the roads, improve our air quality, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and help our economy.”

 For the traveling public, it is quite easy for them to purchase CNG vehicles; public access is immediately available, with many, many sedan and pickup truck options! Both Ford and General Motors are beginning to re-introduce CNG light-duty vehicle platforms and engines into the U.S.  Additionally, there are a wide range of affordable retrofit options, including: pickup trucks; sedans; vans; cargo haulers.  Those individuals or companies who wish to fuel at the CNG facility will be able to use a credit card to purchase the gas at the station.

 The new station, quite literally, marks the rebirth of CNG for the City of Laredo.  It provides state-of-the-art CNG fueling that is reliable, fast and trustworthy to both public and private fleets.