About

THE GAME CHANGER WHITEPAPER

In September 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board certified the world’s first heavy-duty engine that emits oxides of nitrogen (NOx) at levels so low they are considered “near-zero” (NZ). This is the cleanest commercially available heavy-duty truck engine available in the market today. Combined with growing availability of renewable natural gas—a drop-in, ultra-low “carbon intensity” fuel for NGVs—this engine technology will provide unmatched clean on-road transportation for at least a decade, and potentially longer.

Gladstein, Neandross & Associates (GNA) prepared a comprehensive white paper on behalf of a number of public and private sector sponsors, including Agility Fuel Systems, the American Gas Association, the California Natural Gas Vehicle Partnership, Clean Energy, Pacific Gas & Electric Company, the South Coast Air Quality Management District and the Southern California Gas Company. Detailing the recent emergence of this “game changing” heavy-duty natural gas vehicle (NGV) technology, the white paper was finalized and released May 2016. This major report describes how the union of ultra-low NOx heavy-duty NGVs and ultra-low carbon renewable natural gas (RNG) blends can uniquely, immediately, and economically help transform America’s heavy-duty transportation system, reduce petroleum dependency, improve ambient air quality, and address climate change.

This engine technology and fuel combination provides commercially available “near-zero-emission” technology immediately for transit bus, refuse, school bus, and medium-duty truck applications. Additional near-zero-emission heavy-duty natural gas engines are expected to follow by 2018, addressing a wider array of important heavy-duty vehicle (HDV) sectors that includes medium-heavy-duty and heavy-heavy-duty on-road applications. With heavy-duty diesel engines being the number one source of smog-forming emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) in almost every single metropolitan region in the U.S., having technology to reduce emissions 90 percent below even the most stringent US EPA standards is vitally important to cleaning the air we breathe.

Throughout the U.S., fleets currently dominated by diesel-fueled HDVs can begin switching over to NGVs. Where RNG is available and cost-effective, additional benefits can be realized. This will provide HDV fleets with an immediate means to greatly reduce NOx and GHG emissions, while also achieving an attractive payback on their investments.