Menards opening 37 autogas fueling stations

December 10, 2012 By    

Thirty-six Menards home improvement store locations throughout Illinois, as well as one store in Eau Claire, Wis., will now offer publicly accessible propane refueling.

CleanFUEL USA is installing the 37 propane autogas refueling stations. The stations include a PRO2110 dispenser and 1,000-gallon tanks. Ferrellgas is providing installation services and propane for each location.

The Menards retail sites will be open during regular business hours to provide fuel for propane-powered vehicles and cylinders used on gas grills and recreational vehicles.

In addition to installing the autogas fueling stations, Menards partnered with Icom North America to convert 140 new Ford pickup trucks to autogas for store operation use at the 37 Menards locations. These same stores will also be receiving propane-powered forklifts to replace their existing diesel-powered forklifts, with the changeover already taking place in Eau Claire.

Menards also plans to steadily convert its store operation vehicles from gasoline and diesel to propane at other store locations, adding autogas fueling stations in the process.

This Wednesday, the Menards store in Hodgkins, Ill., will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the new station. The event, which will include a propane autogas vehicle display and fueling demonstration, is open to the public. Roy Willis, president and CEO of the Propane Education and Research Council, will be a featured speaker at the ceremony.

The autogas station project was funded through a $12 million grant from the Department of Energy’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Texas State Technical College serves as the lead grantee of the funds, which support the development of a national propane autogas refueling network, incentives to convert school buses and other fleet vehicles to alternative fuels and training for green jobs.

About the Author:

Kevin Yanik was a senior editor at LP Gas Magazine.

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