Real opportunities in play now for the propane industry

August 19, 2025 By Brian Richesson 0 Comments

Suburban Propane fuels equipment outside Dover Motor Speedway. (Photo courtesy of Suburban Propane)

Optimism and enthusiasm reign midway through 2025 – unrelated to the fact that I’ve finally gotten around to watching the ultra-positive “Ted Lasso.”

You get a sense that propane industry leaders are working this year with a bit more pep in their step. They’re talking not only about “defending our turf” but now “going on offense” in an energy environment that sets up well for LPG, owing in part to a more favorable government in Washington, D.C.

This feeling was prevalent during the Propane Education & Research Council’s (PERC) July meeting in Michigan. Part of the feel-good moments and shared high expectations came when Chris Hill of Pico Propane and Fuels assumed the chairmanship and delivered his initial comments, as PERC works to develop its new three-year strategic plan.

“We have to take advantage of this place and time we’re in right now,” Hill says, later adding, “If we can build traction and momentum, we can reap the benefits for the next 10 to 15 years.”

Hill didn’t shy away from raising the bar for the 9-billion-gallon-a-year industry either, targeting 12 billion to 15 billion gallons in sales over the next decade.

The Texas native chaired a shorter-than-usual public meeting that saw PERC approve seven funding requests, including two sizeable dockets – for Nexio and Blue Bird. The Nexio project drew most of the conversation as the Houston-based company is working to commercialize a propane-fueled bobtail. More to come on Nexio later this year.

Why not power?

While much of the conversation surrounded what’s to come, growing gallons in the power generation market is a real opportunity now for the industry.

Earlier this year, at the Propane Expo in Charlotte, North Carolina, I attended an educational session focused on power generation. The presenter showed several slides packed full of company logos representing manufacturers and other providers of power gen equipment. Many of these companies promote propane as a fuel that powers their equipment in multiple applications. This sector rivals any other when you consider the propane-fueled equipment available right now, and we’re also learning about European OEMs having a growing interest in the United States.

So, if the equipment and the end-use applications already exist, it seems like a natural fit for propane marketers to get involved here – or at least to explore the possibilities for their business. In echoing the theme for this issue, the products and partnerships are out there now for marketers interested in diversifying their business.

“A lot of these propane [companies] are not used to power generation getting dropped in their lap,” Scott Mook of Evergreen Mobile Power, maker of the creatively named JuiceBox generator, tells me. “Typically, this has been a diesel platform.”

But that’s no longer the case. Certainly, some of the industry’s forward-thinking propane marketers are either working in this space already or considering their options. Mook shares about his conversations with some of the larger companies, but Bert Warner of PERC adds that the smaller mom-and-pops have an equal chance to make this market work for them.

In fact, Mook says, propane marketers already have a sizeable advantage and can “double dip” to boost their revenue. They already have the customer base that aligns well with this equipment, and they can expand their services to more than just propane – they can provide power. And with today’s heavy energy demands, an unreliable electric grid and a thirst for clean fuel sources, marketers could find themselves in an enviable position.