Some short-haul and regional truckers are already receiving $32,000 federal grants for purchasing trucks that run on LNG.
Pushing forward with his plan to decrease America’s dependence on foreign oil, Texas billionaire T. Boone Pickens is vying for stimulus money to help diesel-dependent truckers convert over to natural gas-powered engines.
Pickens is pushing for a $28 billion pilot program that would convert 350,000 heavy-duty trucks over to running on liquefied natural gas, or LNG. He said this can be achieved through the use of incentives such as federal tax credits or grants.
On Friday, Feb. 6, the economic stimulus plan was being debated in the U.S. Senate.
According to Pickens, converting these trucks over to LNG “would cut our foreign oil dependence by over 5 percent.”
“We want the Senate to allow trucking companies – large and small truckers who operate 18-wheelers – to get tax breaks for buying trucks that run on natural gas,” Pickens said in a recent Pickens Plan e-mail.
Some short-haul and regional truckers are already receiving $32,000 federal grants for purchasing trucks that run on LNG.
One company, Total Transportation Services Inc. in Rancho Dominguez, CA, has purchased eight Kenworth T800 trucks with LNG-powered engines.
Pickens is also pushing to build out the national infrastructure to build more LNG fueling sites so that long-haul truckers can benefit the same as short-haul operations.
The pilot program would be beneficial because, besides helping truckers comply with stringent emissions standards and decreasing their dependence on oil, the plan would also create more than 450,000 jobs.
“It will add jobs as the heavy truck manufacturers hire (or retain) workers to build the new natural gas engines,” according to the Pickens Plan e-mail.
Check out Land Line Magazine’s March/April issue to find out more about LNG and the push to switch to the alternative fuel source to power heavy trucks.
– By Clarissa Kell-Holland, staff writer
clarissa_kell-holland@landlinemag.com
Pickens is pushing for a $28 billion pilot program that would convert 350,000 heavy-duty trucks over to running on liquefied natural gas, or LNG. He said this can be achieved through the use of incentives such as federal tax credits or grants.
On Friday, Feb. 6, the economic stimulus plan was being debated in the U.S. Senate.
According to Pickens, converting these trucks over to LNG “would cut our foreign oil dependence by over 5 percent.”
“We want the Senate to allow trucking companies – large and small truckers who operate 18-wheelers – to get tax breaks for buying trucks that run on natural gas,” Pickens said in a recent Pickens Plan e-mail.
Some short-haul and regional truckers are already receiving $32,000 federal grants for purchasing trucks that run on LNG.
One company, Total Transportation Services Inc. in Rancho Dominguez, CA, has purchased eight Kenworth T800 trucks with LNG-powered engines.
Pickens is also pushing to build out the national infrastructure to build more LNG fueling sites so that long-haul truckers can benefit the same as short-haul operations.
The pilot program would be beneficial because, besides helping truckers comply with stringent emissions standards and decreasing their dependence on oil, the plan would also create more than 450,000 jobs.
“It will add jobs as the heavy truck manufacturers hire (or retain) workers to build the new natural gas engines,” according to the Pickens Plan e-mail.
Check out Land Line Magazine’s March/April issue to find out more about LNG and the push to switch to the alternative fuel source to power heavy trucks.
– By Clarissa Kell-Holland, staff writer
clarissa_kell-holland@landlinemag.com
Tags: cng, fuel, grants, landline, mag, pickens, plan, trucking
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Donna Smith on -
The $28 billion pilot program converting 350,000 heavy-duty trucks over to running on liquefied natural gas is one more obvious step in the right direction for freeing us from dependence on foreign oil.
The key sentence in this post is:
"Pickens is also pushing to build out the national infrastructure to build more LNG fueling sites so that long-haul truckers can benefit the same as short-haul operations."
A definite plan to build a significant number of LNG fueling sites is the prerequisite, stimulating and encouraging the manufacturing of the LNG engines.
Helping truckers comply with stringent emissions standards, reducing foreign oil dependency by over 5%, and creating 450,00 jobs. What's to debate?
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Permalink Reply by William P. Murphy on -
Donna,
First, Please excuss my meesages they may have mistakes, but the general ideas tends to come through. One of the main concept I was trying to pass on is that looking at the picture of the wind farm can be more than a bridge. With solor and natural gas powered generator Mr. Pickens wind farm would a 24/7 electric source until we have created something comes around. With the long Haul Trucking part we need to control the flow of money to our projects. Mr. Pickens has all the right stuff but land is expensive when people see the can profit that can be put to better use some where else. The way I see it is use short term bonds we can, through the free market control Washington sending in the right areas. Warren Buffet is getting money for trains so we need to help direct the money the wind farm, and fueling station. With short term bonds we make money and the plans comes together sooner. The internet TV reaches more people in a short period of time and the public will invest more money into the project. We need to get the small business loan to pass so that the parts makers that lost out can build the parts need to manufacture the new cars. this gets your companies and ideas into play faster. More later William
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Permalink Reply by William P. Murphy on
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Mike,
The honeymoon in Washington D.C. is over due to some of the measure in the Stimulus and the distrubation of money. Today the Obama Army is over. The Picken Army is a unknown web page, which I found out about when I say Mr. Pickens on the news for about a time frame of 30 second. people don't see an change they see the news station give him only enough time for thier use. If you noticed that a hard break,or cutting him off when it proved thier point then bye bye. Since the Cspan Book Review of a book called "Internal Combustion" I would have not seen it coming and I would have never played the energy stock to pay for a trip to Switzerland. I gave the book to a common Joe as myself and he thought insane, but thanks to Mr. Pickens T.V. ads he would still think A new energy future was A pipe dream. Now with the new Vista Home Premium, people can watch pre-recorded news and streaming video (LIVE TV) 24/7. I read the plamsa cleaning article, if it wasn't for that third second clip I wouldn't even have thought to look for the Plan. People will watch TV on how to get these ideas funded with thier own money. Here in Denver, Qwest (phone company) with a high speed line or sitting at Starbucks, McDonalds or Barnes and Noble you can watch internet tv. I my opinion, if we build long haul trucks and rail traffic it's a waste of Taxpayers money. After AIG and the other if we don't create an Army that can
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Permalink Reply by William P. Murphy on
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invest and rely sole on a small group like Patton said to Ike when they talking about Baston "we can still lose this war. " Right now people are starting to feel left out. People respond to the news we need to get them news that bring more into the Army and we can Wipe energy faster then ten years. Solar, NG and Nuclear is were we start and move into all of the ideas here. But, We need an Army not they Navy Seals. Right now I;m listen to Ann Coulter rip up they Americian Will power to do this project. Thats who on now. We need to make that type of think placed on the bonfire of history past. We need people upbeat and know that the are going to share in the biggest step in energy since we went from wood to coal. In Switzerland thier are truck but they work regions and countries and short as much as possible. If we think that we are going to recreate the same system then we are wasting money on two things that do the same thing. In a pinch they can long haul but running two of the same thing is money we can't put into new forms like hydrogen. Even though hydrogen and electric are resonable one, Hydrogen is for the next energy movement, electric wasting nature wealth until we build a battery that real has the ability to preform. Clean coal is a good goal right now but in the future. We need to think about
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Permalink Reply by William P. Murphy on
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right now and energy save device and at the same time think of the electronic movement at the same time. I'm a Capitalist but we need to focus on a business time line not only for energy independence in ten years but for at least 200 years out until we can mine another plant. I see alot of great Ideas but we need mass media of your own and a plan and investment that will be constant. they government and tax breaks can only go so far. We need the biggest bang for buck right now and and R&D incentives because we will need all of your ideas, and we need a bigger and better informed Army that are excited and ready to jump in, instead of letting the likes of Anns in the world always talking negitive messages that kills the drive of others. William
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Permalink Reply by TruckerDesiree on
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Thanks Mike,
I wonder if you know which Truck Manufacturers besides Kenworth are working on a Natural Gas Engine?
Also, with the question on Fueling Sites, this opens an entirely new business oppotunity, has there been much support? resistance?
I'm curious to understand who is onboard for this courageous undertaking.
Thanks,
Desiree
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Permalink Reply by Mike Johnston on -
I believe all of the major truck manufacturers have nat gas engines available or in the works. Even John Deere has a nat gas engine for farmers. :-) Of course such engines can also run on biogas which livestock operations have in abundance...
On site fueling is available much as farms and residences already have on site nat gas or propane taks for heating and cooking. Retail on site sales at gas stations and truckstops will develop as demand increases. That is why it is good to start with fleets who return home each day to refuel.
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Permalink Reply by William P. Murphy on
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Desiree,
Mike and myself have seen CNG equipment. When I was a teenager I learned how to operate a Bobcat that used CNG' Also in many large plants and Navy in closed spaces such fortlift operate so the they don't have to ventalate the closed area. But, I read the article about ground water contamination. When the EPA was created the river in the eastern manucturing area were on fire. The need for regulation were real world. Since the creation of of the EPA the orginization that won have become the the biggest problem in cleaning thing up. The spend most of the time hurting the development to a greener Earth. No you can do that is now some person counting on a check. We need to reinvent the mission statement. Two examples: The water problem can be monitor buy a machine I help build that could detect 1 part per million that would be place in line with pipes in nuclear plant to detect if maintains on rustin pipes need to be replaced, an old complaint with the birds is a as seen on TV device. By creating an enviroment cock roaches live the area in your house. If we used a low sonic noise the bird will adjust the flight patterns so theat they won't hit the turbine. Just like the the Alaskian pipeline the animals have adjust and use it for warmth. Some people need a new miision statemant. William
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