Friday, September 5, 2008

Compressed Natural Gas Station for University CNG Cars

The University of Denver has installed a compressed natural gas fueling station for 15 vehicles that have been converted to burn natural gas instead of gasoline.

It’s believed to be a first among Colorado universities.

The fuel is cheaper and emits less carbon than gasoline, the university said Thursday.

The cars were filling up at a retail natural gas station, but now can fill up on campus, said Allan Wilson, DU’s director of building services.

Since the program started, the cars have cut fuel costs for the university by at least $12,000 and kept 9.5 tons of carbon out of the atmosphere, Wilson said in a statement.

The new station, which draws natural gas off existing lines and compresses it, enables DU to run vehicles at the equivalent of buying $2.25-a-gallon gasoline, the university said.

DU said it used a $180,000 grant from the Denver-based Strategic Environmental Project Pipeline (StEPP) Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to clean energy, to convert 15 vehicles serving facilities maintenance, parking services and procurement to use compressed natural gas Each conversion costs about $12,000, and vehicles still can burn gasoline in a pinch.

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