New Stations Will Support Saddle Creek’s Growing Natural Gas Truck Fleet —
Seal Beach, CA (March 19, 2012) — Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (Nasdaq: CLNE) has signed a 10-year strategic partnership agreement with Saddle Creek Corporation, a leading logistics services provider, to build natural gas fueling stations at existing Saddle Creek locations in support of Saddle Creek’s expanding natural gas-powered truck fleet.
Saddle Creek is a nationwide third-party supply chain logistics (3PL) company that integrates transportation, warehousing, contract packaging and fulfillment services. The company operates 29 facilities across the country, which aggregate over 14 million square feet of warehousing space.
The first of Saddle Creek’s planned network of natural gas fueling stations opened in December at the company’s headquarters campus in Lakeland, Florida. Designed to fuel up to 120 CNG trucks per day, it is equipped with four fast-fill pumps and 20 time-fill hoses. Other sites under consideration include Saddle Creek locations in Atlanta, Georgia, Charlotte, North Carolina, and Dallas, Texas.
James Harger, Chief Marketing Officer, Clean Energy, said, “We are proud to partner with Saddle Creek, an environmental leader within the freight community, on this natural gas station development effort. Investing in natural gas vehicles for its fleets, and the fuel stations to supply them, is clear evidence of Saddle Creek’s commitment to help the supply chain trucking industry lower fuel costs, curtail harmful emissions, and reduce dependence on imported oil.”
Mike DelBovo, President, Saddle Creek Transportation, said, “Sustainability is a core strategy at Saddle Creek, and this major new station-building agreement with Clean Energy marks a significant milestone in our efforts to transition our truck fleets to natural gas power. Our aim is to provide the benefits of this clean, cost-efficient, abundant domestic fuel to our shipping industry customers across the nation.”
Currently priced up to $1.50 or more per gallon lower than diesel fuel, depending on market conditions, the use of natural gas fuel reduces costs significantly for vehicle and fleet owners, and lowers greenhouse gas emissions up to 23% in medium to heavy-duty vehicles. Additionally, natural gas is a secure North American energy source, with 98% of the natural gas consumed produced in the U.S. and Canada.
Clean Energy (Nasdaq: CLNE) is the largest provider of natural gas fuel for transportation in North America and a global leader in the expanding natural gas vehicle fueling market. We have operations in compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) vehicle fueling; construction and operation of natural gas fueling stations; compressor equipment and technology; biomethane production; and vehicle conversion. We fuel over 530 fleet customers and 25,000 vehicles daily at more than 273 strategic locations across the country with a broad customer base in the refuse, transit, trucking, shuttle, taxi, airport and municipal fleet markets.
We are building America’s Natural Gas Highway™, a network comprised initially of 150 planned LNG truck fueling stations connecting major freight trucking corridors across the country.
IMW Industries, Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary, is a global supplier of compressed natural gas equipment for vehicle fueling and industrial applications with more than 1,200 installations in 25 countries. NorthStar, a wholly owned subsidiary, is the recognized leader in LNG/LCNG (liquefied to compressed natural gas) fueling system technologies and equipment, station construction and operations. It has built 70% of the LNG fueling stations in the United States. BAF Technologies, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, is a leading provider of natural gas vehicle systems and conversions for taxis, vans, pick-up trucks and shuttle buses. It has converted more than 15,000 vehicles. Clean Energy Renewable Fuels (CERF), a wholly owned subsidiary, is developing renewable natural gas (RNG) or biomethane production facilities in the United States. CERF owns (70%) and operates a landfill gas facility in Dallas, Texas that produces RNG for delivery in the nation’s gas pipeline network for power generation and transportation fuel. CERF is building a second facility in Canton, Michigan, and has contracted for a third in North Shelby, Tennessee. We own and operate LNG production plants in Willis, Texas and Boron, California with combined capacity of 260,000 LNG gallons per day and that are designed to expand to 340,000 LNG gallons per day as demand increases. For more information, visit www.cleanenergyfuels.com.
Forward-Looking Statements — This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including statements about the deployment of natural gas vehicles, Saddle Creek’s plans to build a network of fueling stations, and the benefits of natural gas relative to diesel fuel. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of several factors, including, but not limited to the price per gallon of LNG relative to diesel and gasoline, and permitting or other delays encountered during construction. The forward-looking statements made herein speak only as of the date of this press release and, unless otherwise required by law, the company undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. Additionally, the reports and other documents the Company files with the SEC (available at www.sec.gov) contain risk factors, which may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this news release.