Purdue University in Indiana has released the final version of its Comprehensive Energy Master Plan, which calls for a shift to natural gas for the university's power generation.

Drafted to weigh the least expensive and most efficient ways to meet demand for heating, cooling and electricity on the 2,600-acre campus, the plan includes roughly $80 million in upgrades by 2018. That money will be offset by lower energy costs.

Notable portions of the plan include replacing the coal-fired boiler at the campus utility with a gas turbine and installing advanced meters on 150 buildings to better gauge energy efficiency.  A portion of the funding for implementing this plan will come from a separate, cancelled $54 million plan to indefinitely extend coal usage at the campus utility.

Purdue has recognized what a lot of electricity capacity builders now know. That on a levelized cost basis, natural gas is the cheapest form of new electricity. Several trustees of Purdue mentioned that the decades-low prices of natural gas were the most important factor in reaching a conclusion that using more gas was a prudent path. With natural gas prices around $2.30 per billion BTU in Indiana, the economic benefits of making this conversion are clear.

In addition to providing an affordable and stable source of energy, natural gas offers numerous benefits for our environment. When used for power generation, natural gas has virtually no emissions of sulfur dioxide, particulate matter or mercury. That will keep the air for Purdue students and the surrounding West Lafayette cleaner for everyone.

As Purdue works to implement their master plan, we applaud their decision to recognize the cost benefits of this clean, abundant American resource.

As gasoline prices hovers close to $4 per gallon, local businesses in Ohio are turning to compressed natural gas (CNG) to fuel their vehicles for less.

Frecka Plumbing Company of Cuyhoga Falls is already in the process of converting their 10 company vans to dedicated bi-fuel vehicles, meaning they can be powered by clean American natural gas or traditional gasoline. After analyzing the potential savings for his fleet, Tim Frecka, president of Frecka Plumbing, said, "How soon can I get them?

Frecka 's small business is taking advantage of another local business, CNG-One. Founded in 2008, CNG-One converts cars and truck engines to run on natural gas while also maintaining gasoline as a backup fuel. Company CEO Michael Battaglia said that small businesses like Frecka's, with only five or ten vehicles, are hit especially hard when gasoline prices climb, leading some to look for alternatives to save on fuel costs. The conversion process takes about two days and when finished, the vehicle can run on either CNG, or switch over to run on standard gasoline.

The switch to natural gas vehicles (NGVs) makes economic sense. On average, natural gas for fuel typically costs one-third less than conventional gasoline at the pump and approximately 42 percent less than diesel fuel on an energy equivalent basis. In addition to fuel savings, NGVs offer lower operating and maintenance costs, which generates significant savings over the life of a vehicle.

The benefits of NGVs are clear - not only do they offer significant fuel savings, but they utilize an abundant, domestic resource that provides a cleaner-burning ride for consumers.  And for small businesses like Frecka Plumbing, using natural gas adds up to more money for salaries, growth and expansion.

Natural gas currently provides about 23 percent of our nation's electricity and thanks to an abundant supply and low, stable prices, the share for power generation is expected to increase in the coming years. Beyond providing electricity for our homes and communities, natural gas also offers a stable and affordable source of energy for many American industries such as steel, plastics and chemicals.

U.S. petrochemical companies that several years ago were housing their manufacturing operations overseas in a quest for affordable energy have regained a competitive advantage right here at home. This means keeping and growing more jobs for U.S. workers. Kevin Swift, chief economist for the American Chemistry Council, told the New York Times that low cost natural gas gives the United States a competitive advantage.

Natural gas is well-positioned for greater use in power generation.  This expansion is already occurring, as evidenced by Georgia Power's recent announcement that it has opened the second of three natural gas units at Plant McDonough in Smyrna, Georgia. Once completed, these three plants will provide clean electricity for roughly 625,000 households .

The safe and responsible development of natural gas has numerous benefits to our economy.  Providing U.S. companies and utilities with a stable, affordable source of energy will result in cost savings, job growth and economic success right here at home as our economy continues to work toward full recovery.

There's been an update to a good piece of news that we wrote about several weeks ago.

ANGA member company Anadarko is garnering praise from environmental groups, federal land managers, the EPA and others involved in a new project in the Uinta Basin, located in northeast Utah.

The natural gas project, set to be developed in Utah's Greater Natural Buttes area, will involve $10 billion in investment in about 3,500 wells and could employ 2,900 people at peak construction. The project "could create as many as 15,466 jobs and $3.1 billion in economic impact annually throughout the life of the project," according to the Western Energy Alliance.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar signed a record of decision approving the project in the Uinta Basin in Salt Lake City on Tuesday.  Here's what he said at the signing ceremony

"The partnership that we see here today, with not only the oil and gas community but also with the conservation community, tells us that we can do both, that we can develop the energy resources of the nation, and at the same time that we can make sure that we are taking the conservation measures that are so important to the future of our nation, so important to tourism, and so important to the conservation legacy of the United States."

The project, considered a blueprint for positive collaboration, will provide long-term economic benefits and job creation to the region in a way that will ensure the environmental protection of the White River and Greater Natural Buttes area. Anadarko will recycle 80 percent of flowback water and will install equipment to reduce the amount of air pollution released at drill sites.

Congratulations to Anadarko for offering yet another example of how to balance energy development and conservation. The final environmental impact statement for the project can be viewed here.

Last fall, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin and Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper announced a high-level, bipartisan initiative to increase the demand for natural gas through the use of natural gas vehicles. Since then the Governors of 11 additional states have signed the NGV MOU and have worked closely with the natural gas community to support the growth of infrastructure and fueling station initiatives to serve the increasing number of public and private natural gas vehicles (NGVs) on the road.

This week, the governors took their efforts to a whole new level.

In a letter to 19 auto manufacturers with plants in the U.S., the team of governors pushed for the increased production of more affordable compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles. As an incentive, the governors re-committed to buy CNG vehicles for their respective state fleets.

"Abundant, affordable, clean‐burning natural gas presents a tremendous opportunity for America to realize an energy future using domestic resources to fuel our nation's transportation needs," wrote the governors. "To that end, we are committed to explore the aggregation of our annual state fleet vehicle procurements to provide an incentive to manufacture affordable, functional natural gas vehicles."

So why the big push for natural gas vehicles? The answer is found in the benefits that NGV's offer in terms of lower operation costs and reduced emissions to our environment. To fuel an NGV, it costs about half of what it takes to fill up a car powered by gasoline. And the greater use of NGV's also benefits our environment. NGVS emit less smog-producing nitrogen oxide, particulate matter, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide than gasoline-powered vehicles.

This bipartisan team of governors recognizes that their combined purchasing power is one way to encourage auto manufacturers to harness the abundant and affordable natural gas resources right here in America and to ask automakers to seriously consider the value in producing new models not only for state fleets but also to the everyday consumer. This "power in numbers" can - and will - help jumpstart cleaner transportation choices, and with their powerful collective voice, this gubernatorial team certainly is on the road to a better future with cleaner, more affordable natural gas vehicles.

Abundant, domestic and affordable natural gas is not only growing in use for transportation and power generation, but is also helping lead the resurgence of America's chemical manufacturing industry. Thanks to our natural gas supplies, chemical companies are bringing shuttered plants back online, expanding operations and creating jobs that once were sent overseas due to a lack of affordable energy here at home.

A recent article in the Houston Chronicle ("New Dow Ethylene Plant Would Employ Thousands") reported that Dow Chemical Co. will build an ethylene production plant in Freeport, supporting thousands of jobs and stimulating the local economy. The plant will be a $1.7 billion project requiring 2,000 workers during construction and 600 jobs after construction with salaries averaging $75,000, the Chronicle reports.

The article explains that new drilling techniques such as hydraulic fracturing have resulted in the development of domestic natural gas enabling manufacturers to invest in multi-billion-dollar chemical plants once thought to be too expensive to develop and operate.

And it is not just Dow realizing the opportunities from abundant natural gas supplies here at home.  The National Association of Manufacturers estimates that thanks to abundant and affordable natural gas, there will be 1 million new manufacturing jobs in this country by 2025.

Shell recently announced plans to build an ethylene cracker plant in the Marcellus region in Pennsylvania. Ethylene cracker plants are important because they convert natural gas byproducts into a form that can be used for manufacturing goods such as plastics that are used by American's every day.

This revolutionary trend towards robust and flourishing American manufacturing would not have been possible without the natural gas being developed in shale formations today. And we applaud companies like Shell, and Dow and others that are taking advantage of this important time in our nation's industrial story.

With summer driving season fast-approaching and gasoline hovering around $4 a gallon, a team of 13 geologists from ANGA member company Southwestern Energy will take turns driving three cars on a 2,467 mile road trip to Long Beach, CA from their offices in Arkansas and Texas. In undertaking this trip, they will demonstrate the viability (and affordability!) of compressed natural gas (CNG) as an alternative to traditional transportation fuels. The team estimates that it will refuel at approximately 20 CNG stations along the way, and the trip will also demonstrate the growing infrastructure (read: fueling stations) for natural gas vehicles across the country.

"We strongly believe that compressed natural gas is an important part of the future of our industry and energy independence for our country," said Steve Mueller, Southwestern's president and CEO in commenting on the trek. "CNG also represents good consumer economics. The benefits, including its affordability at a time when gasoline prices have remained high, make it a smart investment."

Southwestern added more than 100 CNG vehicles to its fleet in 2011 and has plans to convert an additional 66 this year. It also gave 21Southwestern employees new CNG vehicles and home-refueling appliances in February through an initiative to put more CNG vehicles on the road.

More fueling stations for natural gas vehicles, paired with significant fuel cost savings and lower emissions are shining a new light on natural gas for transportation. Because natural gas can power the heaviest and busiest vehicles on the road, municipalities and private fleets across the country are converting their buses, waste trucks and service vehicles to natural gas. The result? Fewer smog-forming emissions and significant savings from lower fuel and operating costs.

The current national average for CNG is approximately $2.13 compared to a $3.90 for gasoline. And with American automobile manufacturers like Honda and Chevy coming out with light-duty cars and trucks, consumers are taking a new look at natural gas for their vehicles.

Good luck to the whole Southwestern team, and make sure to check in with us on Twitter @ANGAus along the way!

We need reliable resources to meet our nation's energy needs. And we need clean energy to protect the environment. What better day than Earth Day to celebrate the natural gas community's commitment to clean air?

Clean, domestic natural gas is playing a vital role in shaping a better energy landscape for generations to come. When used for power generation, natural gas burns cleaner than the primary alternative. Right now, only about a quarter of natural gas-plant capacity in the U.S. power-generation fleet is being used, which means we have room to immediately increase our use of this resource and dramatically reduce emissions of traditional pollutants and greenhouse gases.

When used in transportation, natural gas offers the unmatched ability to power private and public fleets with this cleaner burning fuel. Natural gas vehicles (NGVs) run cleaner than vehicles powered by traditional gasoline and diesel, reducing smog-producing NOx pollutants and particulate matter.

Earth Day serves to increase the awareness and protection of our environment. The natural gas community stands ready to produce this abundant resource safely and responsibly so that its benefits can be realized in communities across the United States.

Frito-Lay is adding its household name to the growing list of U.S. companies utilizing compressed natural gas (CNG) in their fleet vehicles to drive down fuel costs and emissions.  This week the company, which runs the seventh-largest private delivery fleet in the U.S., announced it will add 67 CNG trucks to its motor pool.  The move will save Frito-Lay about $2.50 per gasoline gallon equivalent of fuel they purchase, and enable them to reduce their consumption of diesel by 900,000 gallons annually.

And there's more good news: this is just the beginning for Frito-Lay. Michael O'Connell, senior director of fleet capability, said the company retires approximately 125 tractor-trailers per year, and while it could take six to seven years, the company is committed to adopting CNG vehicles.

Frito-Lay is not alone in demonstrating economic and environmental stewardship by adding CNG vehicles. Car manufacturers such as Chrysler and General Motors have announced the development of dedicated and bi-fuel options for consumers, and companies like Ryder and UPS have made headlines with dramatic expansions of their corporate natural gas vehicle fleets.

Other companies are well on their way to reaching significant sustainability goals. AT&T will have 8,000 CNG vehicles by 2013 and Waste Management will convert its entire North American fleet to natural gas. With vast supplies of this clean, domestic resource, it's not hard to see why companies around the country are choosing economic and environmentally friendly natural gas vehicles and we applaud Frito-Lay for this recent development.

Domestic natural gas production is not only stimulating Pennsylvania's economy and contributing to a cleaner environment, it is providing jobs for America's military men and women. A recent article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Shale Industry Welcomes Military Skills," highlights some of the industry opportunities awaiting the many members of our military who have returned home in need of jobs. As the article notes, industry jobs are a particularly good fit for returning veterans given the focus these men and women have on safety and discipline, both of which are critical for safe and responsible natural gas development.

The military trains its members in many different specialties, and because the employment needs of the natural gas industry are so diverse, there are many options from which our military men and women can choose, ranging from truck driving, to equipment operation to on-site management to engineering. While many of our veterans return from deployment with the job skills needed to begin working immediately, the industry is working with programs across Pennsylvania to provide training so that more of our military men and women can accept positions in this growing field. One of these great programs is the Pittsburgh's Veterans Leadership Program, which provides a four-week training course on shale gas.

We are proud to report that many of our own member companies have committed to creating a strong veteran workforce, providing these honorable men and women with the opportunities they deserve as they return home. Two of the largest operators in the state, ANGA members Range Resources and Chesapeake Energy, have shown this commitment recently, boasting high rates of veteran employment. Range estimates that 15 percent of its workforce consists of veterans, while Chesapeake plans to hire 1,000 veterans in 2012.

Our service men and women devote their lives to protecting our nation, so when these heroes return home to their families, they deserve well-paying and rewarding job opportunities. The natural gas community supports our service members and will continue in our commitment to provide secure jobs for veterans across the country.