PACCAR Leasing Co. (PacLease) and Kenworth Sales Co. have debuted a program whereby heavy-duty trucking fleets can rent vehicles that run on liquefied natural gas (LNG) in lieu of signing long-term leases or buying new LNG trucks.
The program is aimed mainly at fleets that are running routes in Utah, Idaho, eastern Oregon and the Las Vegas area. To accommodate the fleets' refueling needs, PacLease and Kenworth Sales Co. have partnered with Blu LNG, which is building a wide network of LNG stations in these areas.
The companies say the Kenworth LNG trucks will be available in local-delivery, regional-haul, long-haul and heavy-haul configurations in all four states: in Boise, Idaho Falls and Jerome in Idaho; at three sites in Salt Lake City, one in Salina and one in Washington in Utah; in Las Vegas; and in Pendleton, Ore.
The four truck configurations will be built off the Kenworth T800 platform, equipped with one 120-gallon LNG fuel tank and a 15-liter ISX G natural gas engine from Westport HD. The local-delivery configuration will feature a day cab, single drive axle and a weight rating of 65,000 GVW. The regional-haul configuration will feature a day cab, tandem drive axle and a weight rating of 80,000 GVW. The line-haul configuration will feature a 38-inch sleeper, tandem or tridem drive axles and a weight rating of 80,000 GVW. The heavy-haul configuration will feature day cab or 38-inch sleeper, heavy-duty tridem drive axles and maximum weight ratings that meet local state weight laws. PacLease says it can also provide long-haul units with dual LNG tanks for fleets with longer operating ranges.
‘Were excited to be offering private fleets and truck operators a chance to try an LNG-powered truck in areas where such opportunities have never really existed before,’ says Olen Hunter, director of sales for PacLease. ‘For companies involved in regional food and beverage distribution, oil and gas exploration, hauling raw products for the agricultural industry, or finished products for food processors, this will be an opportunity to test natural gas-powered trucks in their specific operations and duty cycles.’
