text: Natural gas vehicles gain traction with fleets; less so with consumers – The Denver Post
  Natural gas vehicles gain traction with fleets;…
  James Whiteeagle of Professional Detailers cleans the tires of a 2013 Chevy Camaro on the showroom floor.
  PUBLISHED: March 19, 2013 at 12:08 p.m. | UPDATED: April 30, 2016 at 8:23 a.m.
  As the Denver Auto Show opens Wednesday, visitors will find the usual mix of vehicular exotica — and a new push this year on natural gas fuel.
  Natural gas vehicles, or NGVs, have been around for decades. But they've never been big sellers.
  Now they're enjoying a resurgence as economical fleet vehicles that have the extra benefit of running clean.
  "Fleet operators can definitely see the return on investment," said John Gonzales, a senior engineer at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden.
  Natural gas producer Encana uses NGVs for about 25 percent of its North American fleet. The company estimates its 2012 savings at $16 million for using natural gas in place of gasoline or diesel.
  "Converting our vehicles is part of greater vision to grow demand for natural gas in North America," said David Hill, vice president of operations for Encana.
  Detroit's Big Three manufacturers are making pickups and SUVs with dual-fueling capabilities — natural gas, plus gasoline or diesel.
  That same benefit doesn't often apply to individual drivers, who may have to drive out of their way to fill up. That has limited the consumer market for NGVs.
  "It's always been the chicken-and-egg situation," Gonzales said. "If you make the vehicles, do the fueling stations come, or do you need the fueling stations" to stimulate manufacturing of the vehicles?
  "It strikes me as funny that we can build a Starbucks every 500 feet, but we can't build a bunch of natural gas stations," he said.
  "It's not perfect," Payne said. "But it's a very clean burning fuel, it's abundant and it's very cost effective."