Resources Government Related Articles House Passes FY 2010 Energy Appropriations
House Passes FY 2010 Energy Appropriations PDF Print E-mail
Written by Janna Smeltzer   
Tuesday, 21 July 2009 00:00
The U.S. Department of Energy will award $5 million during fiscal year 2010 to further natural gas engine development, storage and fueling station following passage of the Energy and Water Appropriations last week.

Richard Kolodjiez, executive director of NGVAmerica, referred to the funds as a “placeholder” while the industry awaits a Senate bill for a separate appropriation of additional natural gas vehicle research. The House passed its version of that bill on Monday and authorized $30 million for fiscal years 2010 through 2014.

Blue Bird and Thomas Built Buses are the only large body manufacturers that currently produce CNG buses, but those are equipped with rear-facing engines developed with the last large pot of R&D funds. IC Bus manufactures diesel buses and plug-in hybrid electric buses.

“We don’t have a front engine school bus that runs on natural gas,” said Kolodjiez. “That cuts you out of a lot of the market, but maybe some of this money can be used for that. There’s going to have to be a lot of competition as $5 million is not a lot of money. But I think that’s an important goal.”
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