DOE Awards $8.6 Million for Alternative Fuel Projects
October 25, 2006
DOE announced on October 25th that it has awarded $8.6 million for 16 projects to expand the use of alternative transportation fuels. With the participants' contributions, the total investment in the projects will exceed $25 million. The Clean Cities program is providing the grants, which cover three topic areas: improving the refueling infrastructure for alternative fuels and E85 (a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline), funding the incremental cost of alternative fuel vehicles, and providing idle reduction training and awareness for school districts.
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Thirteen of the DOE projects will expand the alternative fuels infrastructure in 25 states and the District of Columbia. |
Thirteen projects will address the refueling infrastructure for E85 and other alternative fuels. These projects will focus on installing new facilities or making improvements to existing sites that dispense alternative fuels in 25 states and the District of Columbia. The projects as a whole will install about 180 E85 stations, 55 biodiesel stations, five new or expanded compressed natural gas stations, and one liquefied natural gas refueling station. The projects will also add one E85 fuel rack and 10 biodiesel blending facilities to wholesale fuel terminals. The infrastructure projects are expected to reduce the consumption of petroleum-based fuels by up to 30 million gallons per year.
The one project selected to address the incremental cost for alternative fuel vehicles will assist California-based Paramount Scaffold, Inc. in replacing 44 diesel-powered trucks with 44 liquid- propane-powered trucks. In addition, two projects in Utah and Oklahoma will focus on delivering training and awareness programs to reduce vehicle idling in school districts. See the DOE press release and the Clean Cities Web site.