USA TODAY: …The biggest factor undermining oil consumption in the U.S. is the growing abundance of natural gas. Natural gas production has been growing at a steady clip since 2005, but the growth in proven reserves is even more stunning. U.S. proven reserves of natural gas have doubled since 1999! This suggests that the recent supply glut is no flash in the pan…
This year, Cummins Westport — a joint venture of Cummins (ticker: CMI ) and Westport Innovations (NASDAQ: WPRT ) that focuses on building natural-gas powered engines for trucks — introduced the first 12-liter natural gas engine. This engine is capable of powering heavy trucks weighing up to 40 tons, opening up a new market segment for natural gas engines. Cummins Westport already makes natural gas engines for smaller trucks.
Numerous major companies are embracing natural gas for their truck fleets. Home improvement retailer Lowes (NYSE: LOW ) plans to switch its entire truck fleet to natural gas by 2017 . Meanwhile, garbage titan Waste Management (NYSE: WM ) began moving toward natural gas last year, and 80% of the trucks it buys between now and 2017 will run on natural gas… (more)
