DOVER, Del., Aug. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE: CPK) (Chesapeake Utilities or the Company) today announced that the Company has entered into an agreement with Atlanta Gas Light (AGL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Southern Company Gas, for AGL to construct and maintain a compressed natural gas (CNG) filling station at the Port Fuel Center located in Port Wentworth near the Port of Savannah in Georgia. The station will provide a strategic staging area and CNG supply source for the Company's Marlin Gas Services subsidiary's (Marlin) CNG virtual pipeline operations. Marlin is a premier North American supplier of mobile CNG utility and pipeline natural gas solutions, and the Savannah location will provide greater access to Marlin's customers in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.
"With Marlin now fully integrated into the Chesapeake Utilities family of businesses, we continue to look for opportunities for mobile fuel and virtual pipeline solutions that expand our Florida and Delmarva service areas," said Kevin Webber, senior vice president for Chesapeake Utilities Corporation. "This new fueling station not only positions us to support Marlin CNG trailer filling but allows us to extend environmentally friendly service offerings to a variety of new customers in the Southeast."
Atlanta Gas Light has been building and maintaining CNG fueling stations for fleet operators and CNG retailers in Georgia since the early 1990s. AGL currently operates about 275 CNG vehicles across the state in its day-to-day utility operations.
"We have a long history of supporting CNG initiatives and assisting our customers in meeting their sustainability goals by developing and building CNG infrastructure throughout the state so they can deploy clean, efficient natural gas vehicles," said Pedro Cherry, president and CEO of AGL. "We are proud to be Chesapeake Utilities' infrastructure partner on this project and aide in supplying CNG near the Port of Savannah."
Since 1996, Marlin Gas Services has been providing mobile virtual pipeline applications to local gas distribution utilities, municipal gas companies, intrastate and interstate pipeline companies, natural gas producers, various manufacturers and large industrial customers throughout North America. With its experienced and highly trained personnel in combination with its fleet of CNG tankers, mobile compressors and patented offload regulator systems, Marlin Gas Services provides gas supply support during planned interruptions of service as well as responding rapidly to unexpected interruptions.
The Savannah station is designed to serve local CNG fleets as well as renewable natural gas (RNG) fueled vehicles, including high capacity dispensers for fueling Class 8 trucks. The station aligns with the Company's ongoing commitment to environmental responsibility by supplying clean-burning natural gas to fuel vehicles and making it available to customers with limited access to natural gas. CNG-powered vehicles produce lower emissions than gasoline and diesel vehicles, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by up to 30%, and nitrogen oxide emissions by 85%.
Chesapeake Utilities is also in the process of developing and contracting RNG to supply ultra-low carbon fuel for local fleets. When CNG vehicles are fueled with RNG, the greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by up to 90%, or can even be carbon negative depending on the source of the RNG.
In addition, the CNG station will provide opportunities for both on-port and surrounding logistics centers to take advantage of various types of natural gas-fueled equipment, such as yard tractors and trucks, to advance their sustainability initiatives. Chesapeake Utilities and its affiliates are working with a number of truck and equipment manufacturers and financing entities to establish incentives and reasonable financing terms for fleet conversion; and Marlin will be offering a mobile fueling solution for fleets that are on-port or in the regional logistics centers.
"The Georgia Ports Authority has had a long-term commitment to operating in a sustainable fashion and cutting our environmental footprint, in part by transitioning much of our equipment from diesel to electric power," said Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Griff Lynch. "Marlin's entry into the Savannah market will provide the support necessary for our port community to expand the migration to fuel options that lower carbon emissions and provide cleaner air."
The Port Fuel Center is a 15-acre fully permitted site with additional fueling amenities, restaurants and a convenience store. The Center will provide the full array of fueling choices, including diesel and gasoline, to serve the more than 12,000 trucks that pass the site daily. The CNG fueling station, which is slated to open in early 2021, has received the endorsement of the city of Port Wentworth and the Georgia Ports Authority.
"The Port Fuel Center is excited to partner with Marlin to bring additional fueling options for its customers, providing increased opportunities to support more sustainable vehicles and equipment," said Sean Register, owner of the Port Fuel Center.
About Chesapeake Utilities Corporation
Chesapeake Utilities Corporation is a diversified energy delivery company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange, which is engaged in natural gas transmission and distribution; electricity generation and distribution; propane gas distribution; mobile CNG utility services and solutions; and other businesses. Information about Chesapeake Utilities Corporation's businesses is available at www.chpk.com, through the Company's Investor Relations App and on the Annual Report Microsite at cpkannualreport.com.
Please note that Chesapeake Utilities Corporation is not affiliated with Chesapeake Energy, an oil and natural gas exploration company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
About Atlanta Gas Light
Atlanta Gas Light is one of four natural gas distribution companies of Southern Company Gas, a wholly owned subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO). Atlanta Gas Light provides natural gas delivery service to more than 1.6 million customers in Georgia. In operation since 1856, the company is one of the oldest corporations in the state. For more information, visit atlantagaslight.com.
About Southern Company Gas
Southern Company Gas is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE:SO), America's premier energy company. Southern Company Gas serves approximately 4.2 million natural gas utility customers through its regulated distribution companies in four states with approximately 700,000 retail customers through its companies that market natural gas. Other nonutility businesses include investments in interstate pipelines, asset management for natural gas wholesale customers and ownership and operation of natural gas storage facilities. For more information, visit southerncompanygas.com.
About Georgia Ports Authority
Georgia's deepwater ports and inland barge terminals support more than 439,000 jobs throughout the state annually and contribute $25 billion in income, $106 billion in revenue and $2.9 billion in state and local taxes to Georgia's economy. The Port of Savannah is home to the largest single-terminal container facility of its kind in North America, handling 8.5% of U.S. containerized cargo volume and 10% of all U.S. containerized exports in its FY2017. For more information, visit gaports.com.
For more information regarding this press release, contact:
Justin Mulcahy
Public Relations Manager
302.217.7050
jmulcahy@chpk.com
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SOURCE Chesapeake Utilities Corporation
