Atlanta Gas Light Co. has announced that it has received qualified proposals from the City of Atlanta and seven commercial operators to open as many as nine new compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations throughout Georgia.

Over the next 90 days, each potential station owner must finalize contracts with fleet customers to meet minimum annual CNG purchase requirements at each station. Retailers that are successful in fulfilling the post-award requirements are eligible to sign a service agreement with Atlanta Gas Light and obtain CNG service from the utility under a rate approved by the Georgia Public Service Commission.

"While additional work remains for the station owners before these proposals can be turned into service contracts, fleet customers now have more certainty regarding the location of new CNG stations in order to make plans to invest in more natural-gas-fueled vehicles," says Ian Skelton, director of Atlanta Gas Light's natural gas vehicle program.

The new fueling stations will highlight the utility's efforts to further expand the use of CNG in the state. In November 2011, the PSC approved a plan submitted by Atlanta Gas Light to invest $11.57 million from the utility's Universal Service Fund to install natural gas compression and storage equipment at newly proposed CNG fueling stations.
 
In addition to this effort, Atlanta Gas Light says it has recently launched a program aimed at helping individual consumers and small businesses fuel their CNG vehicles. Authorized by the PSC, the program provides low-cost leases of home refueling appliances, known as HRAs, which allow commuters to refill their CNG cars at their own premise overnight, the utility adds.

The nine proposed CNG fueling stations are to be located in Metro Atlanta, Macon, Savannah and Valdosta. According to the utility, the first stations could be open by mid-2013.