Celebrating the grand opening of a new public CNG station in Des Moines are, from left, Marshall Kraft, Ruan transportation director of operations; Stephanie Weisenbach, Iowa Clean Cities Coalition coordinator; Christine Hensley, Des Moines mayor pro-tem; Ralph Arthur, Ruan president of dedicated contract carriage; Bryan Nudelbacher, U.S. Gain business development manager; Jay Byers, Greater Des Moines Partnership CEO; Steve Larsen, Ruan director of procurement and fuel.

Emissions & Efficiency

Ruan celebrates new CNG station opening

July 29, 2015

State and local officials joined representatives from Ruan and U.S. Gain as they watched a Ruan compressed natural gas (CNG) truck break the ribbon to celebrate the grand opening of the newest GAIN Clean Fuel CNG station in North America. The GAIN Clean Fuel station, located at 1205 NE Broadway Avenue in Des Moines, IA, is U.S. Gain’s CNG brand and will fuel Ruan’s fleet of recently converted CNG trucks.Ralph Arthur, Ruan’s president of dedicated contract carriage, said he is excited to have this station open.“A lot of research and planning has gone into making the conversion from diesel fuel to CNG,” he said. “It’s great to see all the planning come to fruition, and we’re looking forward to taking advantage of the many financial and environmental benefits CNG provides. This is a significant next step forward for our company. We believe it's more than just good business; it’s a commitment to making our trucking operations part of the equation when it comes to the stewardship of the environment."Ruan currently has 85 CNG tractors in the Midwest with plans to expand to additional units where there is a fit, the company said.Greater Des Moines Partnership CEO Jay Byers echoed Arthur’s sentiments.“With this announcement, Ruan has again positioned itself as a leader in its industry and the Central Iowa business community,” Byers said. “We are proud to have another clean fuel option in our region to build upon our commitment to sustainability.”Community leaders also expressed support for the new partnership. “This is a great day for not only Ruan but for the region as well,” said Des Moines Mayor Pro-Tem Christine Hensley. “Projects like these have a positive economic impact. It’s good for business, and it’s also good for Des Moines and will hopefully attract more business to utilize this cleaner burning diesel fuel alternative.”The new station will be incorporated into U.S. Gain’s network of Gain Clean Fuel stations throughout the North America. “Despite reduced oil prices, which have lowered the price of diesel fuel, we’re still seeing significant growth in the use of CNG,” said U.S. Gain General Manger Bill Renz. “There continues to be a significant savings, and more and more manufacturers are desiring their carriers to make efforts to reduce their carbon footprint. This is creating a perfect situation for us to partner with carriers to make that happen. We hope that other carriers take advantage of this GAIN station and view our growing network as an incentive to consider converting their fleets.”Design of the project was completed by CESO, Inc. On-site construction and management was provided by its sister company DDC. “It is exciting to see fleet owners continuing to meet their sustainability goals through CNG conversions,” said Scott Bryan, vice president for DDC. “We were thrilled to be supporting U.S. GAIN to bring CNG station development to fleets all across the country.”