OKLAHOMA CITY -- In a deal that will enhance its alternative fuel expertise and open up new markets, Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores Inc. has entered into an agreement to purchase Trillium CNG, a provider of compressed natural gas (CNG).
The agreement will add 37 public-access CNG locations to the Love’s network, bringing the number of Love’s-operated public CNG facilities to 65.
Trillium CNG provides fuel for thousands of natural gas vehicles (NGVs) daily and delivers more than 55 million gallons of CNG per year. Trillium is also a single-source provider of CNG fueling facility design, construction, operational and maintenance services. Technicians maintain the infrastructure at all CNG locations.
For more than 20 years, Trillium’s focus has been on providing fleets with high-performance solutions. Its network of CNG fueling stations has helped to make the transportation fuel alternative more accessible and convenient nationwide.
“The acquisition of Trillium CNG provides Love’s with a great opportunity to leverage the very best of two companies,” said Frank Love, co-CEO of Love’s. “Trillium’s established network of CNG locations and its deep expertise within the industry will also allow Love’s to serve new types of customers in new markets while expanding reach to existing customers.”
Historically, Love’s has provided solutions for heavy-duty and light-duty fleets. As reported in a McLane Co./CSP Daily News Flash, Love’s will begin working with Chicago-based Trillium’s client base, which includes transit authorities, school districts, airport fleets, as well as the motoring public. Love’s existing customers will have the option to fill with CNG at any of the Trillium locations.
“Many of our customers, including fleets and motorists, appreciate the stable pricing that CNG offers, so we’ve remained committed to developing our CNG network,” said Love. “We also understand the demand for cleaner-burning fuels remains steady, and we want to provide more options for our customers.”
The companies will finalize the purchase after regulatory review.
Meanwhile, in late January, Love’s opened its seventeenth Fast-Fill CNG site for heavy-duty trucks and a CNG fueling option for motorists at its travel stop in Williams, Ariz. It is its seventh site on I-40.
“Our locations are strategically placed on I-40 spanning from West Memphis, Ark., to Williams, Ariz., to make it easier for over-the-road drivers to run on CNG,” said Bill Cashmareck, Love’s general manager of natural gas. “Our customers can now travel nearly 1,400 miles along one of the nation’s major thoroughfares and have convenient and reliable access to seven Love’s Fast-Fill CNG locations.”
CNG is available in-lane along with diesel and diesel exhaust fuel (DEF). It offers a fill rate of greater than 10 gallons per minute, meaning a driver can fill a 100 gallon equivalent tank in 10 minutes or less.
I-40 fast-fill locations now open:
1. Oklahoma City, Okla. (I-40, Exit 140)
2. Oklahoma City, Okla. (I-40, Exit 166)
3. Amarillo, Texas (I-40, Exit 74)
4. Williams, Ariz. (I-40, Exit 163)
5. Albuquerque, N.M. (I-40, Exit 158)
6. Webbers Falls, Okla. (I-40, Exit 287)
7. West Memphis, Ark. (I-40, Exit 280)
Additional fast-fill CNG locations
8. Willis, Texas (I-45, Exit 95)
9. Houston (610 Loop, Exit 24A)
10. Dallas (I-35/I-20, Exit 466)
11. Fort Worth, Texas (I-35 W, Exit 40)
12. Katy, Texas (I-10, Exit 737)
13. Rockwall, Texas (I-30, Exit 283)
14. San Antonio (I-35, Exit 144)
15. Thomson, Ga. (I-20, Exit 172)
16. Burbank, Ohio (I-71, Exit 204)
17. Ardmore, Okla. (I-35, Exit 32)
“The demand for CNG has remained steady,” said Cashmareck. “We will continue to search for new areas where CNG is feasible so we can give our customers more access to the financially stable fueling alternative.”
Oklahoma City-based Love’s has more than 360 locations in 40 states.
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