Aiming to Lower Its CO2 Footprint, Verizon Buys 501 Ford Vans to Convert to CNG
By John O'Dell June 11, 2010Pursuing its goal of reducing the environmental impact of its huge fleet of service vehicles, Verizon Communications said it has purchased 501 Ford E-250 cargo vans that will be converted to run on compressed natural gas (CNG).
Ford has launched an aggressive marketing program for vans and trucks that can be converted to CNG or propane fuels without invalidating the factory warranty..
Verizon, the second-largest U.S. phone company, estimates that it will cut its CO2 emissions by more than 1.6 metric tons a year once the alternative fuel E-250 vans replace conventionally fueled vehicles.
The vans, which will be used by installers of phone and Internet-television systems, will be converted by Clean Energy Fuels Corp.'s BAF division, the companies said.
Ford, which has shipped more than 3,000 vans equipped for natural gas conversions in the past seven months, said earlier this week that it will start selling F-450 and F-550 pickup trucks later this year that will be able to be converted to run on either CNG or liquefied natural gas (propane).
Meanwhile, Verizon is trying to cut its own dependency on foreign oil.
The company last week said it purchased 576 Chevrolet Silverado hybrid pickups from General Motors. Those gas-electric pickups get about 40 percent better fuel economy than the conventionally powered versions.
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