Autogas pays off - yet another confirmation

This particular success story is going to be about the Temperature Service Company, a 30-year-old commercial/industrial air conditioning, heating, and refrigeration service and installation company located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois, US, whose fleet of 50 vehicles used to burn approximately 100000 (one hundred thousand) gallons (approx. 379 thousand litres) of petrol per year. When so much fuel is used and a cheaper alternative is readily available on the market, it seems rather obvious than a company would at least consider switching over to the more affordable option. And that's what TSC did.

© Temperature Service CompanyWith a refueling station of their own and large tanks installed on the vehicles, TSC's drivers don't have to feel any range anxiety. Especially that the cars are bi-fuel ones, so they can always switch to commonly available petrol

Obviously, considering wasn't all they did as they actually decided to have 90 percent of the fleet (45 cars, including 40 Chevrolet 2500 vans, 3 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 pick-ups and 2 Ford Edge crossovers) converted to run on autogas. Since this would involve serious amounts of money to be invested, the company turned to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) for incentives. They were granted up to 4000 dollars per vehicle, thus making the conversion procedure much less challenging financially. With that and LPG priced at approx. 50 percent the price of petrol, the estimated payback time was just 9 months.

The process took time to complete. TSC spent a year researching available options and then another nine months actually converting the vehicles. Since refueling infrastructure is still in its development phase, the company opted for high capacity autogas tanks, holding 50 gallons (approx. 190 litres) each. They also installed their own refueling facility on the premises, so that the vehicles can be filled up around the clock, seven days a week. Apparently, the time and effort was well worth it.

Our business will run at a lower overhead cost, which we pass along to our customers by way of lower pricing,” Templin said. “Propane autogas also runs cleaner and at a higher octane than gasoline, so I see my fleet running with greatly reduced maintenance costs, and I anticipate getting a 100-percent increase in my engine life, thus increasing the years between replacing the vehicles.

Scott Templin, president of the Temperature Service Company

Also, since the company has their own refueling station, they are able to negotiate wholesale autogas prices with fuel suppliers. They already have a year-long deal giving them price per gallon below regular retail prices and they can further negotiate the rate in following years. They're already dedicated to LPG and promise to buy future vehicles with the cheaper, greener fuel in mind. Congratulations on the good choice!