UPS announced Wednesday plans to build an additional six compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations and add 390 new CNG tractors and terminal trucks and 50 liquefied natural gas (LNG) vehicles to its alternative fuel and advanced technology fleet. UPS further cements its leadership in the alternative fuel market, while continuing to reduce its environmental footprint, with this more than $90 million investment in natural gas.
“With more than 4,400 natural gas vehicles and a network of fueling stations, UPS has had great results using natural gas as an alternative fuel in our fleet,” says Mark Wallace, UPS senior vice president global engineering and sustainability. “We know the importance of investing in natural gas globally for our fleet and the alternative fuel market. In 2016, we used more than 61 million gallons of natural gas in our ground fleet, which included 4.6 million gallons of renewable natural gas. This helped us to avoid the use of conventional gas and diesel, and decreased CO2 emissions by 100,000 metric tons.”
The six new CNG stations will be built in Ontario, California; Orlando, Florida; Salina, Kansas; Louisville, Kentucky; Greensboro, North Carolina; and Vancouver, British Columbia. Renewable natural gas (RNG) will be used at the station in Ontario to fuel UPS vehicles in the area with renewable compressed natural gas (RCNG).
In 2016, UPS invested $100 million in CNG fueling stations and vehicles. UPS currently operates 31 CNG fueling stations in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nevada, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Tennessee, and West Virginia, and runs CNG vehicles in 38 states in the United States in addition to vehicles in Germany, the Netherlands and Thailand.
The use of natural gas reduces greenhouse gas emissions six to 11 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
RNG, also known as biomethane, can be derived from many abundant and renewable sources, including decomposing organic waste in landfills, wastewater treatment and agriculture. It is then distributed through the natural gas pipeline system, making it available for use as liquefied natural gas (LNG) or CNG.
UPS also purchased 50 additional LNG vehicles that were deployed in Indianapolis, Indiana; Chicago, Illinois; Earth City, Missouri; and Nashville, Tennessee, where UPS has existing LNG stations.
The company has driven more than 1 billion miles since 2000 with its alternative fuel and advanced technology fleet. Through its Rolling Laboratory, UPS uses a research-based approach to determine the right alternative fuel solutions for the location, route and driving environments.
Since 2009, UPS has invested more than $750 million in alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles and fueling stations, globally. UPS deploys the more than 8,100 vehicles in the Rolling Lab to determine what works best in each situation. From old-fashioned pedal power and electric-assisted bicycles in dense urban areas like London and Hamburg to electric and hybrid electric vehicles in the United Sates, UPS puts sustainability innovation into action all over the world.
