Ingevity Corp. has been awarded approximately $256,000 in funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection as part of the 2020 Alternative Fuels Incentive Grant (AFIG) Program.
The grant will be used to demonstrate the economic and environmental benefits of renewable natural gas (RNG) and Ingevity’s adsorbed natural gas (ANG) vehicle platform with eight fleets throughout Pennsylvania. Representing the first use of ANG technology in the state, the AFIG award will cover half of the incremental cost to equip 28 Ford Super Duty F-250 trucks and Ford Transit vans with ANG technology and install complementary low-pressure fueling appliances for participants, as well as costs associated with data collection and analysis.
Ingevity’s grant proposal was supported by a majority of the state’s natural gas utilities including Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania, National Fuel Gas, Peoples Natural Gas, Philadelphia Gas Works and UGI Corporation, as well as commercial partners such as Range Resources, Bloxdorf Contracting, Gateway Engineers and In City Farms. Participating fleets will cover the remaining 50% of the ANG vehicle upfit and fueling appliance costs.
“This award represents an important endorsement of the ANG platform in Pennsylvania as an economically viable, sustainable fueling solution,” says David Newton, vice president of corporate strategy at Ingevity. “This is a significant leap as we continue to demonstrate the benefits of RNG as a transportation fuel in fleets across the U.S. We remain focused on growing ANG awareness and adoption through additional grant and subsidy opportunities, fleet partnerships and collaboration with OEMs to adapt ANG technology on future light-duty vehicle platforms. We are honored to be an AFIG recipient and look forward to working closely with these fleet partners.”
ANG technology is made possible by the characteristics of Ingevity’s Nuchar FuelSorb hardwood-based activated carbon, reducing the onboard storage pressure of natural gas to enable a low-cost and more environmentally friendly natural gas fueling solution for light-duty trucks and vans that – when using RNG – can lower greenhouse gas emissions by up to 125%. The participants included in Ingevity’s award join a growing number of U.S. natural gas utilities and commercial stakeholders investing in ANG-equipped vehicles including SoCalGas, Atlanta Gas Light, Ozinga Energy and Orlando, Fla.
Since 1992, Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection has awarded AFIG Program funding annually to novel alternative fuel solutions in an effort to incentivize municipalities, utilities and corporations to invest in innovative technology that benefits the environment and supports economic development.
Photo: Ingevity’s Our Story web page
