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Moore finds savings with CNG station
By: Sarah Terry-Cobo The Journal Record January 24, 2018 0
Duane Green refuels his refuse truck at the city of Moore's new CNG fueling dispenser built by Sparq Natural Gas. (Photo by Brent Fuchs)
MOORE – Collecting trash is going to cost the city of Moore a little less money.
Moore is the latest city to contract with Sparq Natural Gas to build an on-site CNG fueling dispenser for refuse trucks. City Manager Brooks Mitchell said the project will improve drivers' route efficiency and save up to $40,000 annually on fuel.
He said it was important to have a reliable fuel source.
"We are able to lock in a CNG price for the next three years," Mitchell said. "Stability is important."
Sparq CEO Norman Herrera said there's the possibility he can expand the site to eventually include a retail CNG station open to the public. But he is still working to determine market demand. There are retail CNG dispensers a few miles to the north and to the south of the city's site.
The city's public works department hosted a celebration Tuesday afternoon. The fueling dispensers were operational three weeks ago and the efficiency improvements are already apparent, said Public Works Director Richard Sandefur.
Drivers used to have to fill up their trucks at retail stations, which added time and more miles to the routes. Now the driver can park his truck after the shift is completed and connect to a dispenser, and the system fills it up slowly overnight.
"It's so convenient," Sandefur said. "You unhook in the mornings and don't have to worry about the fuel."
Saving at least 30 minutes per day per driver, with seven drivers over a four-day workweek, adds up to a lot of time savings in a year, he said.
Like other municipal CNG stations, Moore's site needed both electrical and gas pipeline upgrades, so the equipment can process and compress the fuel. Fortunately, Oklahoma Natural Gas had a high-pressure main that runs along NW 27th Street. That allowed them to connect a high-pressure line, which reduces the electricity costs to process the fuel from a gas into a liquid. It also helps the compressors run more smoothly, Herrera said.
Mitchell said it was fortuitous that Herrera and his staff approached the city last summer. The new dispenser was a capital investment the city needed but couldn't afford.
Herrera said there's room to expand to create a retail CNG dispensing station adjacent to the city's public works site. But the land is privately owned, and there are two other stations nearby. Sparq has to ensure there's enough of a customer base first, he said.
CNG Moore Sparq 6:44 pm Wed, January 24, 2018 The Journal Record
Sarah Terry-Cobo
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Former reporter Sarah Terry-Cobo covered energy, health care and other topics for The Journal Record.