Oakland International Airport to Purchase 26 New CNG-Powered Shuttle Buses for AirBART and Rental Car Services
July 24 2008 - 8:30AM
Business Wire
The Oakland Board of Port Commissioners recently authorized the
purchase of 26 new CNG-powered AirBART and rental car shuttle buses
that will be deployed at Oakland International Airport (OAK)
beginning in 2009, replacing older diesel-powered models. Clean
Energy Fuels Corp. (Nasdaq:CLNE) will provide fueling services from
its CNG station located at OAK�s North Field. Six of the new CNG
buses will be assigned to AirBART service, which transports airport
users between the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Coliseum/Oakland
Airport Station and OAK�s terminals. The remaining 20 CNG buses
will support the airport�s Rental Car Center shuttle service.
�Customers will soon enjoy a more comfortable and
environmentally-friendly ride between Oakland International�s
terminals, the airport�s Rental Car Center and BART�s Coliseum
station,� said Steve Grossman, Director of Aviation, Port of
Oakland, which owns and operates the airport. �The new buses will
be deployed in 2009 and will complement the improvements to the
airport�s roadways and terminals,� he added. �Oakland International
Airport�s decision to replace diesel-powered buses with CNG models
means that air pollution and greenhouse gas emission levels will
continue to decrease in the airport area,� said Andrew J.
Littlefair, President and CEO, Clean Energy. In addition, the
replacement of 26 diesel buses with natural gas buses will result
in major fuel cost savings for the airport, projected at up to
$400,000 annually, based on current market prices. �In increasing
numbers, airport and public transit operators are making the switch
from diesel buses to vehicles powered by natural gas fuel,�
Littlefair added. �Experience has shown them that natural gas buses
are cleaner to operate and cheaper to use, which provides important
financial support in a constrained budget environment.� Funding to
purchase the 26 new CNG shuttle buses is made possible in part by a
$1 increase in the AirBART regular one-way fare which took effect
in March 2007, a $10 Customer Facility Charge collected on each
rental car contract, and a $250,000 grant from the Bay Area Air
Quality Management District. OAK will purchase the shuttles from El
Dorado National, based in Chino, Calif. Clean Energy�s public
access CNG station, located on OAK�s North Field, will serve the
new bus fleet. The company offers an additional station near Jack
London Square, Oakland. Clean Energy has designed, built and
currently operates a total of seven public access CNG stations in
the San Francisco Bay Area. OAK�s current AirBART buses have been
in constant, seven-day per week service for 10 years and have
accumulated an average of 600,000 miles per vehicle, which is well
beyond the expected life. The current Rental Car Center buses are
nearly 27 years old. All of these buses must be retired by the end
of 2009 for the Port to conform to the California Air Resources
Board requirements. About the Port of Oakland and Oakland
International Airport The Port of Oakland oversees the Oakland
seaport, Oakland International Airport and 20 miles of waterfront.
The Oakland seaport is the third busiest containerport on the U.S.
West Coast. Oakland International Airport offers 188 daily non-stop
flights to 33 destinations; and the Port�s real estate includes
commercial developments such as Jack London Square, as well as
hundreds of acres of public parks and conservation areas. The Port
of Oakland was established in 1927 and is an independent department
of the City of Oakland. Please visit www.portoakland.com. About
Clean Energy Clean Energy (Nasdaq:CLNE) is the leading provider of
natural gas (CNG and LNG) for transportation in North America. It
has a broad customer base in the refuse, transit, ports, shuttle,
taxi, trucking, airport and municipal fleet markets, fueling more
than 14,000 vehicles daily at over 170 strategic locations across
the United States and Canada. Natural gas is cleaner, cheaper and a
domestic resource, making it a compelling alternative to gasoline
and diesel for high-fuel-use vehicles. Clean Energy del Peru, Clean
Energy�s Peruvian joint venture, operates the world�s largest
natural gas vehicle fueling station in Lima, Peru. Please visit
www.cleanenergyfuels.com. Forward-Looking Statements This news
release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that involve risks, uncertainties
and assumptions. Actual results and the timing of events could
differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking
statements, including the number of natural gas buses deployed at
Oakland International Airport and any associated fuel savings. The
forward-looking statements made herein speak only as of the date of
this press release and neither the company nor the Port undertakes
any obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements
to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.
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