Love’s Travel Stops is planning to purchase Trillium CNG, a provider of compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel and refueling services, for an undisclosed sum.
The $22.6 billion travel stop chain noted that its Trillium acquisition, which is awaiting regulatory review before finalization, will add 37 public-access CNG locations to its refueling network – bringing the number of Love’s-operated public CNG facilities to 65.
“Trillium’s established network of CNG locations and its deep expertise within the industry will allow us to serve new types of customers in new markets while expanding reach to existing customers,” noted Frank Love, co-CEO of Love’s, in a statement.
Ryan Welton, a Love’s spokesperson, told Fleet Owner that the pending deal would not only beef up the travel stop’s ability to provide CNG for its core light- and heavy-duty truck customers but would allow it to enter into new “niche markets” such as transit bus fleets, school bus fleets, airport fleets, as well broaden its natural gas refueling reach among the general motoring public.
“Why Trillium? They are a solid company with a lot of industry expertise and they sell more than 55 million gallons of CNG per year,” he explained. “Now, first and foremost, we’ll focus [the Trillium] acquisition on the needs of our primary customer base. But it will allow us to eventually expand beyond it as well.”
“Many of our Customers, including fleets and motorists, appreciate the stable pricing that CNG offers, so we’ve remained committed to developing our CNG network,” added Frank Love. “We also understand the demand for cleaner-burning fuels remains steady and we want to provide more options for our customers.”