When Eagle Distributing of Shreveport, Inc. wanted to replace all of their diesel-powered delivery trucks, they turned to Ryder System, Inc. for a full-service lease agreement for 23 CNG tractors.
“As a socially responsible company, we wanted to look at our fleet options not only from a cost perspective, but also as a good neighbor to our customers and the communities we serve,” said Brad Nichols, President of Eagle, an Anheuser-Busch distributor in northwestern Louisiana and Ryder’s first natural gas lease customer in Louisiana.
The CNG vehicles are part of Eagle’s plan to reduce its carbon footprint as well as control fuel costs. “By changing out these 23 vehicles, Eagle will cut its greenhouse gas emissions from its current 878 tons down to 670 tons, which will be a reduction of 24 percent,” said Doug Jones, Operations Manager for Eagle. “We are also changing out smaller fleet vehicles to CNG. We are committed and will continue to change out more vehicles this year and in the years to come until all our vehicles are converted to CNG,” he added.
“These advanced technology compressed natural gas vehicles work as well as their diesel counterparts and produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions,” Jones said. “With the availability and planned growth of natural gas fueling infrastructure in our service area in Louisiana, we believe CNG vehicles will continue to gain momentum as an environmentally beneficial and cost-competitive alternative.”
The leased CNG vehicles will be used to make deliveries throughout Eagle’s service territory of nine parishes in Northwest Louisiana. The distributor is also exploring plans to build a natural gas fueling station near its headquarters in Shreveport.
For Ryder, Eagle’s agreement adds Shreveport to the leasing and rental markets of California, Arizona, and Michigan that supply CNG vehicles. As part of the full-service agreement, Ryder will provide maintenance for the 23 CNG vehicles from Ryder’s Shreveport service facility, which is being upgraded for compliance with natural gas standards.
“Over the last several years, we’ve seen an increasing number of companies not only seek alternatives to reduce and control fuel costs, but also to help them control their carbon output and meet their environmental objectives,” said Dennis Cooke, President of Fleet Management Solutions at Ryder. “We pride ourselves on listening to the needs of the marketplace and developing the solutions that will help drive the industry forward.”
Eagle was founded in June 1992 by Robert and Pam Nichols as a family-owned and locally- operated company. The company is a wholesale distributor of beer, wine, liquor and non- alcohol products with a territory covering the Louisiana parishes of Caddo, Claiborne, Bienville, Bossier, Desoto, Natchitoches, Red River, Webster, and Winn. Eagle distributes the Anheuser-Busch InBev brands that include the Budweiser, Michelob, Busch, and Natural brand families of beers, as well as a number of other import, craft, and non-alcohol products. Eagle also distributes many import and craft brands, such as Stella Artois, Beck’s, Corona, Modelo, Abita, and New Belgium, to name a few. Non-alcohol products Eagle carries include Red Bull, Nestle Nesquik & Waters, Nesteas, EAS Myoplex, Taste of Florida Mixers and much more. Eagle employs over 150 people and services over 1,200 retail accounts.
Upgrading to CNG trucks can reduce your company’s carbon footprint and help you control fuel costs. Leasing CNG trucks provides an efficient and no-hassle way to make this transition.
