Government funds LPG program for highway trucks Down Under
Canadian company Westpoint Innovations has been awarded almost AUD$1.4 million (US$1.075 million) by the Australian Government under their Alternative Fuels Conversion Programme (AFCP) to evaluate liquid petroleum gas (LPG, also known as LNG) as a heavy-duty highway truck fuel in Australia. The AFCP is an Australian government project designed to assist operators and manufacturers of heavy commercial vehicles and buses to convert to Natural Gas (NG) or LPG, as well as assisting manufacturers in the development and testing of engine technologies that can demonstrate greenhouse gas benefits and maintain air quality emissions performance.
Three leading Australian truck fleet owners will acquire four new Kenworth trucks powered by 2008 model Cummins 15-litre engines incorporating Westport's LPG fuel technology as part of the project to evaluate a range of criteria including performance, economy, emissions and noise.
Westport believes that their LPG technology matched with the cheaper price of LPG fuel in Australia and the huge distances traveled could deliver annual fuel savings to the fleet owners of over AUD$132,000 (US$102,000). Beyond economic benefits, LPG also offers lower nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and greenhouse gas emissions, including CO2, compared to diesel fuel. Greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced by as much as 15 - 20 percent over diesel fuel for trucks operating 400,000 km / 248,000 miles per year.
Analysis: $100,000 is a lot of money in anyone's language, especially per truck per year! If LPG can deliver massive fuel savings while simultaneously improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, everyone wins.
Related:
- Prometheus Energy starts production of LNG from landfill
- Diesel displacement technology operates engines on CNG, LNG and diesel
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
TDIMeister 11:42AM (2/07/2007)
The company is named WESTPORT Innovations. Not Westpoint.
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Luke 10:26AM (2/08/2007)
LPG and LNG are different things. LPG is mostly propane and butane: the stuff you get to run your barbecue in little steel tanks. LNG is mostly methane and requires cryogeninc cooling in order to remain a liquid.
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Tim 8:20PM (2/07/2007)
A terrorist’s dream is to have a giant potential BOMB such as a semi-trailer, container ship or tank farm of highly explosive gas such as LNG, H2 etc. parked next to a juicy target. A container ship of this stuff has about the same energy as 55 Hiroshima type nuclear bombs. Are they (including Al “Green” Gore) worried? YOU BET! http://www.timrileylaw.com/LNG.htm
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