2015 Green Fleets of the Bluegrass Award Winners

Posted by & filed under Kentucky.

The 2015 Green Fleets of the Bluegrass winners were awarded at KCFC’s Spring Membership Meeting on Tuesday, March 17 at the Louisville Zoo. Congratulations to this year’s winners!

See all Green Fleets Award Winners here.

UPS Invests $100 Million In Compressed Natural Gas, CNG Vehicles And Related Infrastructure

Posted by & filed under National.

Helping to Create and Support Nationwide Natural Gas Market

UPS (NYSE:UPS) announced plans to build an additional 12 compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations and add 380 new CNG tractors to its growing alternative fuel and advanced technology fleet. The CNG fueling stations and vehicle purchases totaling $100 million are part of UPS’s ongoing commitment to diversify its fuel sources and reduce its environmental impact.

“At UPS, we own our fleet and our infrastructure. That allows us to invest for the long-term, rather than planning around near-term fluctuations in fuel pricing,” said Mark Wallace, UPS senior vice president global engineering and sustainability. “CNG is part of a broad investment in a variety of alternative fuel vehicles. Taken together, all of our alternative fuel vehicles represent 6% of the more than 100,000 UPS global fleet, and have driven a 10% annual reduction in use of conventional fuel.”

UPS is working to meet its goal of logging one billion miles with its alternative fuel and advanced technology fleet by the end of 2017, using a Rolling Laboratory approach to determine the right alternative fuel solutions to meet the unique needs of route-specific driving environments.

Read more here.

Natural Gas Vehicle Legislation – KY HB536

Posted by & filed under Kentucky.

Bill Title

AN ACT relating to natural gas as transportation fuel and making an appropriation therefor.

Summary

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 152 to create a fund and award rebates to commercial or governmental entities that purchase, lease, or convert vehicles in their fleet to burn natural gas fuels; specify that Energy and Environment Cabinet would oversee the program and report on its activities; create a new section of KRS 141 to provide a tax credit for a taxpayer that constructs fueling infrastructure for vehicles that burn natural gas fuels; amend KRS 141.0205 to conform; appropriate $2 million in the next two fiscal years for the fund and rebates.

Status

Not passed

Cummins Westport Near Zero Natural Gas Engine Certified – 90% NOx reduction

Posted by & filed under National.

Cummins Westport Inc. (CWI) announces the new ISL G Near Zero (NZ) NOx natural gas engine is the first MidRange engine in North America to receive emission certifications from both U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Air Resources Board (ARB) in California that meet the 0.02 g/bhp-hr optional Near Zero NOx Emissions standards for medium-duty truck, urban bus, school bus and refuse applications.

Read full press release here.

Fiscal Year 2016 Vehicle Technologies Program Wide Funding Opportunity Announcement

Posted by & filed under National.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy is issuing, on behalf of the Vehicle Technologies Office, this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), entitled “Fiscal Year 2016 Vehicle Technologies Program Wide Funding Opportunity Announcement.”

This FOA supports a broad portfolio of advanced highway transportation technologies that reduce petroleum consumption and greenhouse gas emission, while meeting or exceeding vehicle performance and cost expectations. Projects will focus on reducing the cost and improving the performance of a mix of near-and-long-term vehicle technologies.

Activities will contribute to achieving the goals of the EV Everywhere Grand Challenge, with a focus on accelerating the development of advanced batteries, power electronics, and lightweight materials technologies, while also supporting technology development to reduce petroleum consumption through advancements in combustion engines, alternative fuels, and other enabling technologies. The FOA also supports Clean Cities initiatives to overcome market barriers.

Join us for a Webinar on January 28, 2016

Title: DE-FOA-0001384 Fiscal Year 2016 Vehicle Technologies Program Wide Funding Opportunity Announcement Applicant Webinar

Date: January 28, 2016

Time: 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST

Please register for this webinar using the following link:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3302892619932711426

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar

Forty percent of vehicles will be natural gas powered

Posted by & filed under National.

January 4, 2016

By 2025, 40 percent of you will be driving vehicles powered by compressed natural gas, according to projections,” said Detief Hallermann, Ph.D., associate clinical professor, Texas A&M University.

There has been a huge increase in natural gas finds in the U.S. with the volume of natural gas being discovered in conjunction with new petroleum drilling, the U.S. has gone from a net importer of compressed natural gas to being a big exporter.

As some point, the U.S. will be in a position to use much of that natural gas domestically, and that includes new manufacturing, heating and cooling and vehicles. Hallermann says the domestic natural gas industry is still under construction. There is a transition from oil use to natural gas use that will be progressing rapidly in the next few years, he contends.

Read full article here

 

Louisville gets new Tesla Supercharger 

Posted by & filed under Kentucky.

 

 

 

Contact:
Jon Tyson
502-644-1719
Info@EVolveKY.org
www.EVolveKY.org
December 23, 2015
LOUISVILLE, KY –  As we get ready to ring in the new year,  local electric vehicle (EV) drivers, as well as travelers, will have a brand new reason to be charged up about Louisville.Next week, Louisville’s first Tesla Supercharger station will up and running — located in the parking lot of the Sullivan University School of Pharmacy.  The Supercharger is a direct current (DC) fast-charging station that is for use with the Tesla Model S sedan, Model X SUV and eventually the Tesla Model 3 (Tesla’s lower cost model), which will be unveiled to the public in March of 2016.  The Louisville location will have the capacity to charge eight vehicles at a time.Worldwide, there are 576 Supercharger stations with 3,321 Superchargers able to provide “fuel” for these EVs.”The Sullivan University system supports advancing technologies. This charging site for Tesla vehicles is but one example,” said Glenn Sullivan, president of Sullivan University.In addition to the new Tesla chargers, Sullivan University is exploring adding a Level 2 charger that will charge other makes and models of electric cars there as well.”Glenn is one of our members who not only drives a Tesla because it’s a remarkable car, but he also has a genuine interest in the environment,” said Stuart Ungar, president of EVolve KY, Kentucky’s electric vehicle group.  “He has installed solar hot water heating at their Gardiner Point residence hall and uses LED floodlights around their buildings. That’s just two examples of some of the things he has done.  He seems to always be on the lookout for green options.”This past year has been a great one for EVs here in Louisville.  TARC started service with their new ZeroBus all-electric vehicles, EVolve KY put on its first Drive Electric Week and the group held a ribbon-cutting for its first Adopt-a-Charger location (which provides fee-free Level 2 charging) at The Green Building. And now with the Tesla Supercharger, there is another very high profile reminder that Louisville is moving in the right direction.For updates on when the Louisville Tesla Supercharger will be open to the public, please visit the Tesla website at: www.teslamotors.com

Alternative Fuel Tax Credit Extensions in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016

Posted by & filed under National.

On Friday, December 18th, President Obama signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 (H.R. 2029). Division Q, the “Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act” (PATH Act), retroactively extending many tax credits. PATH Act provisions with implications for clean transportation include:

  • Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Tax Credit. Section 182 extends the tax credit for alternative fuel infrastructure through December 31, 2016. Fueling equipment for natural gas, propane, liquefied hydrogen, electricity, E85, and biodiesel are eligible for a tax credit of 30%, up to $30,000. Residential fueling equipment may receive a tax credit up to $1,000.
  • Alternative Fuel Mixture Excise Tax Credit. Section 192 also extends the $0.50 per gallon tax credit for alternative fuel used to produce a mixture containing at least 0.1% gasoline, diesel, or kerosene through December 31, 2016. Alternative fuel blenders must be registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
  • Biodiesel Income Tax Credit. Section 185 extends the biodiesel income tax credit through December 31, 2016. A taxpayer that delivers unblended biodiesel (B100) into the tank of a vehicle may be eligible for a $1.00 per gallon of biodiesel, agri-biodiesel, or renewable diesel tax credit.
  • Biodiesel Mixture Excise Tax Credit. Section 185 also extends the $0.50 per gallon tax credit for biodiesel, agri-biodiesel, or renewable diesel used to produce a mixture containing at least 0.1% gasoline, diesel, or kerosene through December 31, 2016. Alternative fuel blenders must be registered with the IRS.
  • Second Generation Producer Tax Credit. Section 184 extends the tax credit for second generation biofuel producers throughDecember 31, 2016. Second generation biofuel producers registered with the IRS may be eligible for a $1.01 per gallon of biodiesel tax credit.

The changes outlined above are effective immediately. To view the full text of the PATH Act, visit https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-114hr2029enr/pdf/BILLS-114hr2029enr.pdf. See the Alternative Fuels Data Center Federal Laws and Incentives page for descriptions of each incentive.

 

Case Study: National Parks Reduce Park Emissions with Propane Maintenance Equipment

Posted by & filed under Kentucky, National.

The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) set up a partnership with the U.S. National Park Service to donate propane-powered equipment to parks that could use it. Watch the video below to hear how Blue Ridge Parkway, Yellowstone, and Mammoth Cave national parks have all made alternative fuels part of their operations, such as using propane for mowing, fueling tour buses, and backup power generation. Find out more here. Download case study here.