Westport Innovations Inc. has secured a funding commitment of C$2.3 million (US$2.35 million) from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) to develop Westport HD technology for high-horsepower applications using high-pressure direct injection and/or natural gas/diesel dual-fuel approaches.
Westport is proposing to significantly improve the cost structure for operators of high-horsepower equipment while achieving compliance with increasingly stringent emission regulations and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by up to 25%. Consortium members in the SDTC project are Canadian National Railways Company and Gaz Métro Transportation Solutions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gaz Métro, the main distributor of natural gas in Quebec. Details of the program include:
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Investigate the design and feasibility of high performance natural gas technology for high-horsepower applications such as mining, rail, and marine.
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Design, build, and test prototype hardware suitable for a high-horsepower application.
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Performance and durability testing of liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel system with both fuel and test facility provided by Gaz Métro Transportation Solutions.
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Install prototype fuel system, test, and demonstrate in service using a Canadian National Railways locomotive.
Roughly one fifth of Canada’s energy related GHG emissions result from industrial freight transportation and emissions from this sector are increasing by approximately 13% per year. In the railway industry, fuel accounts for approximately 20% of the operating expenses. LNG can already be delivered at a cost significantly less than diesel which, in high fuel use applications such as locomotives and off-road vehicles, could deliver substantial economic benefits over the life of the vehicle.
Such a decrease in cost would significantly enhance operational competitiveness while offering substantial GHG reductions. Natural Resources Canada’s recently released “Natural Gas Use in the Canadian Transportation Sector Deployment Roadmap” identified that for-hire and private trucking fleets that operate along regional corridors and in urban areas can improve their competitiveness and reduce their environmental impacts by using natural gas.
The funding commitment from SDTC is subject to contracting and successful completion of project milestones.