Anheuser-Busch Converts St. Louis Fleet to Compressed Natural Gas
Anheuser-Busch said it is replacing its 97 diesel-fuel tractors with compressed natural gas-powered trucks and expects to reduce its emissions by 2,500 tons per year.
Last year the brewer made the switch for its Houston fleet of 66 tractors. The company says about 30% of its heavy-haul dedicated trucks now run on natural gas.
“Transitioning our entire St. Louis tractor fleet to CNG-powered engines brings environmental benefits directly to our company and our community,” said James Sembrot, Anheuser-Busch senior director of transportation, in a statement.
“A conversion of this scale is indicative of the commitment we’ve made to deploying more sustainable technologies and processes at each stage of the brewing process – from seed to sip,” said Sembrot.
The Freightliner trucks will be filled at a new CNG station near the brewery and the fleet will continue to be managed by J.B. Hunt.
The company said it expects a 23% reduction in greenhouse gasses with the CNG-powered trucks compared with the diesel vehicles. The reduction is the equivalent of taking about 526 passenger vehicles off the road, according to Anheuser-Busch.
The trucks will deliver about 31 million cases of beer this fall during the football season, one of the brewery’s busiest shipping periods of the year, the company said
“I want to thank Anheuser-Busch for setting an example for businesses across the city by committing to environmentally-friendly business practices,” St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said in a statement.
“With Anheuser-Busch identifying and implementing sustainable alternatives, the company is helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make St. Louis a better place for all of us to live, work and play,” said Slay.
J.B. Hunt ranks No. 3 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
