Evidence Of A Tipping Point? Have Trucking and Natural Gas Gone Mainstream?

Will we look back on this story in five years and realize we were witnesses to that point in time when US trucking and natural gas went mainstream?

I know that looking back to March 20, 2000, this will be remembered as the tipping point when scares about global warming became a joke.

But I digress.

Back to the story at hand. 

Will we look back on this story five years from now and realize we were witnesses to that point in time when US trucking and natural gas went mainstream?

The New York Times is reporting: the trucking industry is set to expand its use of natural gas.

Now the trucking industry, with its millions of 18-wheelers moving products like potato chips, underarm deodorant and copy paper around the country, is taking a leap forward in switching from petroleum to cleaner-burning natural gas. And if natural gas remains cheap, consumers may benefit again.

This month, Cummins, a leading engine manufacturer, began shipping big, new engines that make long runs on natural gas possible. A skeletal network of refueling stations at dozens of truck stops stands ready. Major shippers like Procter & Gamble, mindful of both fuel costs and green credentials, are turning to companies with natural gas trucks in their fleets.

And in the latest sign of how the momentum for natural gas in transportation is accelerating, United Parcel Service plans to announce in the next few days that it will expand its fleet of heavy 18-wheel vehicles running on liquefied natural gas, or L.N.G., to 800 by the end of 2014, from 112. The vehicles will use the new Cummins engines, produced under a joint venture with Westport Innovations. 

This story is simply huge. 

By the way, we've talked about the safety precautions required while re-fueling with LNG. Some folks have written in suggesting that this could be a show-stopper. Not to worry. Truckers will be inside having dinner, showering, checking their e-mail, while "professionals" are fueling their trucks.

I forget where, but it might have been RBN Energy saying that there needs to be a "new" market to soak up all the natural gas being produced in the US. Perhaps long-haul trucking will be that "new" market.