Apache Celebrates Opening of CNG Public Access Fueling Station in
Lafayette
HOUSTON, July 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Apache Corporation (NYSE, Nasdaq: APA)
was joined by the Lafayette, La., city-parish president
and other local dignitaries to commemorate the opening of the company's first
public-access compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling station in Louisiana.
"The state of Louisiana is a leader in supporting increased
use of natural gas," said Rod Eichler, Apache's president and
chief operating officer. "The addition of this CNG fueling station in Lafayette is a step toward building
the infrastructure needed to fuel America's cars and trucks with natural gas, a
cleaner-burning and abundant domestic resource."
Eichler and several Louisiana dignitaries attended the opening
ceremony held at the Apache-branded station at 515 East Verot School
Road . The event showcased a variety of natural gas-powered vehicles,
including some of the city's natural gas-powered buses. Lafayette is in the process of
converting its entire fleet of buses and many of its city vehicles to natural
gas power.
Dignitaries on hand to show their support for the station included: Joey Durel, Lafayette city-parish president; Keith Mosing, chairman and CEO of
Frank's; Rob Guidry president and
CEO of the Greater Lafayette Chamber of
Commerce ; and Gifford
Briggs, vice president of the Louisiana Oil and Gas
Association , which has been a strong partner with Apache in its efforts to
increase the use of CNG in vehicles.
"The infrastructure investment to enable Lafayette's
deployment of CNG is critical," Durel said. "This investment is helping to forge
partnerships, both public and private, that are decreasing the operating costs
of private companies and governments in our area. Congratulations to Apache, and
thank you to our many partners who are helping to ensure that this investment
will be a true success for all of Lafayette."
Guidry said the station helps provide momentum for increased CNG
conversion.
"This event reflects a major advancement of the Chamber's goal of expanding
the market for CNG," said Guidry. "Apache's leadership in investing in this
infrastructure provides strong impetus to those considering conversion
programs."
The site of the station was chosen in large part because of its proximity to
a concentration of large public and private natural gas fleet vehicles. Apache's
CNG fueling station will provide local government, private industry and the
public with an economic and environmentally friendly alternative to gasoline.
"Frank's is pleased to do its part in getting this natural gas filling
station opened," said Mosing of Frank's, which provided the land for the
Apache-branded station. "There is an abundance of natural gas available and I
believe we are heading in the right direction to continue to develop and use
natural gas as a fuel source."
CNG-powered vehicles showcased at the event included:
Lafayette City-Parish bus- Lafayette Parish Sheriff's patrol car
- Frank's 3/4-ton Chevrolet field service truck
Apache Corp. 'sTahoe and Chevrolet Silverado- Ford Westport LD OEM F-250 truck
- LEAM Drilling service vehicle
- Ford Expedition of Gifford
Briggs, vice president of the
Louisiana Oil and Gas Association - Acadian Ambulance as converted by Tony Parich, owner of Control Tech.
The station boasts two dual-hose fueling dispensers capable of fueling four
cars simultaneously at a rate of three-to-four gallons equivalent per minute.
The self-service station accepts a broad range of credit cards, as well as
standard fleet cards.
The station is unattended, but customers may contact an Apache representative
with questions about CNG refueling anytime by calling a toll-free number posted
on the fueling pumps.
Apache currently has converted 274 vehicles to run on CNG and plans to
convert a total of 350 of its fleet by year's end. By 2015, the company expects
to have 80 percent of its 1,000-plus fleet in the U.S. converted.
Apache also offers financial incentives to its full-time employees who choose
to switch to CNG. All full-time Apache employees who purchase a new dedicated
CNG vehicle or convert their vehicle to CNG receive a $5,000 Visa credit card for purchasing
fuel.
Currently, there are more than 120,000 natural gas vehicles on U.S. roads
today and more than 15 million worldwide, according to NGVAmerica. Industry data
shows that vehicular natural gas nearly doubled between 2003 and 2009. In 2010,
natural gas displaced more than 350 million gasoline gallon equivalents.
The International Association for Natural Gas Vehicles estimates that
within 10 years there will be more than 50 million natural gas vehicles — or,
about 9 percent of the world's transportation fleets — on the road
worldwide.
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