UPS has announced plans to purchase more than 6,000 natural gas-powered trucks starting in 2020 and running to 2022.
The three-year commitment represents a US$450m investment in expanding the company’s alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicle fleet as well as supporting infrastructure.
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The new vehicles will be equipped with compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel systems provided under an exclusive agreement with Agility Fuel Solutions, a business of Hexagon Composites.
The investment in CNG fuel systems expands UPS’s relationship with Agility Fuel Solutions. The CNG fleet expansion also provides additional capacity for expanding the use of renewable natural gas (RNG).
“UPS continues to expand and improve our smart logistics network by implementing new technologies and creating a flexible, data-driven and sustainable network,” said UPS chief information and engineering officer, Juan Perez.
“That is why we intend for 25% of our vehicles purchased in 2020 to run on alternative fuels.”
Vehicles equipped with CNG fuel systems can interchangeably use RNG and conventional natural gas. Produced from landfills, dairy farms and other bio sources, RNG yields up to a 90% reduction in lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions when compared to conventional diesel.
As of October, 2019, UPS has agreed to purchase 230m gallon equivalents of RNG during the next seven years, making the company the largest consumer of RNG in the transportation industry.
Since 2016, Agility Fuel Solutions has provided natural gas fuel storage and delivery systems to more than 1,700 UPS trucks. As part of the new agreement, Agility will provide end-to-end natural gas systems for heavy-duty gas trucks, terminal tractors and medium-duty walk-in vans.
These will include on-board CNG fuel storage and management and Agility’s certified natural gas engine fuel systems.
During the past decade, UPS has invested more than US$1bn in alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles and fueling stations to help meet its target of reducing absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 12% across its global ground operations by 2025.
UPS has continued its relationship with TruStar Energy to design, manufacture and install five new CNG fueling stations in Lathrop, Visalia and Moreno Valley, California, Houston, Texas and Cleveland, Ohio.
UPS will deploy the new CNG vehicles on routes to use the new CNG stations as well as adding to existing natural gas fleets in other UPS locations. By the end of 2019, UPS will be operating 61 natural gas fueling stations located across the US and outside America in Vancouver, Canada and Tamworth, UK.
Using its ‘Rolling Laboratory’ approach, UPS deploys more than 10,000 low-emission vehicles.
