$84 million contract awarded for creation of 29 compressed natural gas stations in Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has awarded a public-private partnership contract to bring compressed natural gas public transit-fueling stations to the state.

The Trillium CNG team, which includes a Pennsylvania firm, Larson Design Group of Williamsport, has been tapped to design, build, finance, operate and maintain CNG fueling stations at 29 public transit sites, including four spots in the Greater Lehigh Valley.

The $84.5 million project will have the team build the stations over the next five years and maintain and upgrade the stations as needed over the term of the 20-year agreement.

As part of Trillium’s proposal, CNG fueling will be accessible to the general public at seven transit agency sites, with the option to add additional sites. It did not disclose the original seven sites.

PennDOT will receive a 15 percent royalty, excluding taxes, for each gallon of fuel sold to the public, which will be used to support the cost of the project. The Trillium team has guaranteed at least $2.1 million in royalties over the term of the agreement.

PennDOT said it expects transit agencies and the department to save more than $10 million annually by using the CNG stations.

When the project is completed, the fueling stations will supply gas to more than 1,600 CNG buses at transit agencies across the state.

Locations for CNG stations include the Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority facilities in Allentown and Easton. Construction will start on those stations in 2017.

Work will begin on a station for the Schuylkill Transportation System in 2018 and for the Monroe County Transportation Authority in 2019.

Source: LVB