Natural gas as vehicle fuel protects environment, reduces dependence on foreign oil
Alagasco unveils company’s four new natural gas Honda Civic GX sedans

Contact: Susan Delenne, 205-326-1612   Jody Seal, 205-326-2750

Note: Alagasco will host a news conference on Thursday, March 26 at 2 p.m. at Vulcan Park.  The company’s four natural gas Honda Civic GX sedans will be on display and available for test drives.  Speakers scheduled to appear are James McManus, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Energen Corporation; Dudley Reynolds, president of Alagasco; Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford; Chris Lewis, chairman of the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority; Chuck Ernst, Senior Vice President of Honda Manufacturing of Alabama; and Richard Kolodziej, president of NGVAmerica.    

Birmingham, AL – March 20, 2009 – Recognizing the need for alternative vehicle fuels as an effective solution to help protect the environment and reduce the country’s dependence on foreign oil, Alagasco has acquired four new natural gas Honda Civic GX sedans.

The Honda Civic GX is a dedicated compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicle, meaning it operates exclusively on clean, efficient natural gas.  Compressed natural gas is the cleanest burning alternative transportation fuel and has fewer emissions than any other vehicle fuel being used today.

“Natural gas vehicles can improve air quality while reducing our dependence on foreign oil.  Alagasco is the largest distributor of natural gas in Alabama and is working locally and nationally to promote domestically produced, clean-burning, energy-efficient natural gas as part of the solution to our nation’s energy challenges.” said James McManus, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Energen Corporation, the parent company of Alagasco. 

The Birmingham area has historically faced air quality issues associated with ground level ozone and particle pollution, so natural gas vehicles are a viable alternative.  According to the Energy Information Administration, 25 percent of Alabama’s carbon dioxide pollution comes from transportation. 

Natural gas is an environmentally friendly fuel made right here in the United States.  More than 80 percent of the natural gas used in the United States is domestically produced – making the country less dependent on foreign oil. 

Natural gas vehicles (NGVs) are most practical in fleets because fleets generally operate several vehicles that are centrally maintained and travel more miles daily than typical passenger cars.  For example, the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority operates 47 natural gas buses and 13 natural gas trolleys in the Birmingham metro area.

Compressed natural gas can be purchased at public refueling stations.  CNG is currently available, upon approval, at the transit authority’s station at 8th Avenue North and 31st Street in downtown Birmingham. 

CNG can also be distributed at home with a vehicle refueling appliance, such as the Phill by Fuelmaker.  The Phill unit compresses and feeds natural gas from a home’s natural gas line directly to the NGV.

According to NGVAmerica, there are more than 120,000 natural gas vehicles on U.S. roads today and more than 7.7 million worldwide.

To download a photo of Alagasco’s natural gas powered Honda Civic GX, click here.