Utah’s First LNG Station Nears Finish Line

SALT LAKE CITY -- CH4 Energy Corp. set the first Liquefied Natural gas (LNG) storage tank on its permanent foundation right after the new year. The move pushes the construction of a retail natural-gas fueling station in Utah one step closer to completion. CH4 Energy expects the station to be fully operational in five to six weeks.

The station is rising at the Pilot Flying J travel plaza at the intersection of Interstates 80 and 15 in Salt Lake City. It is being developed with being partially funded by a Department of Energy/Recovery Act grant administered by the Utah Clean Cities Coalition.

Once complete, the site will dispense Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and LNG faster than any public natural gas fueling station in North America, according to CH4 Energy.

"This station will be the premier public natural gas fueling station in North America and will be a great asset to the State of Utah, which is leading North America in the deployment of vehicles using clean, domestically produced natural gas," said CH4 Energy chief executive officer Merritt Norton. "The station will also provide a critical interstate fueling infrastructure link for Class 7 and Class 8 heavy-duty trucks. Utah is the only state in the country where a significant proportion of average citizens drive natural gas vehicles, and this station -- which is strategically located at the crossroads of the West at the intersection of Interstate 80 and Interstate 15, as well as the major highway, Utah Highway 201 -- will provide public access to the fastest and most convenient fill up in North America from both CNG and LNG natural gas vehicles.

Once open, the station will accept all major credit cards, fleet fueling cards and the Utah state fleet fueling card. It will be open every day of the year and costumers will have access to Class 8 truck parking, a convenience store, restrooms, shower facilities, a Denny’s restaurant, diesel exhaust fluid, Wi-Fi access and a drivers’ lounge. In addition, the station has separate ingress and egress lanes for light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles.