Forum Post: Boone Pickens on Morning Joe. "Gotcha" moment.
Posted 12 years ago on Aug. 23, 2012, 2:28 p.m. EST by alterorabolish1
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Pickens and everyone at the table wondered why common sense was not being applied on the issue of natural gas transformation to the trucking industry.
Points made included 30% less pollution, much less oil needing to be imported, and we have plenty of natural gas reserves. Other good points were made to support this idea but they all were bewildered that common sense was not actually used. Pickens said natural gas would need to be $6.
I wanted to scream the answer to the show and everyone watching. It's MORE PROFITABLE THE WAY IT'S DONE CURRENTLY! Not that it's better for the country or the economy because it's the opposite of that. Natural Gas sells for less than $3 and that's not enough profit for people that manipulate world events for corporate rule number 1, maximizing profits.
I have worked in trucking, it would be impossible without nationalizing the industry. The fuel companies would fight you, and there are a dozen of them. The trucking companies would fight you. $30k engine? Hell they won't even spend $10 to replace an air coupling (i had to argue at 3 company shops before buying it myself). If you want to actually do something useful, switch the trains to natural gas. The trucking industry is terrified of railroads, everyone know if gas goes much higher trucking is crippled, everyone is trying to get as much money as possible out before the whole industry goes belly up. Rail will be there in 20 years, trucking will be gone. Someone tell Pickens to design a nat gas train engine and open source it. The he will see his plan fly.
I don't know whether a nat gas train engine is feasible but it's a good idea.
The fuel companies are preventing this common sense because nat gas is too cheap for them to make the profits they want. Trucking companies are dominated in size by the fuel companies and can't do anything without their consent.
Does anyone ever figure in the costs of converting from gasoline to natural gas? You're changing from a liquid to a gas kept under pressure, so it's more then just the engine. There would be a massive number of fuel systems that would have to be altered. Then there would have to be a complete change in the infrastructure too, digging up all those tanks designed to hold a liquid and replacing them with tanks designed for holding a gas.
It's been calculated. About $30,000 to refit a big truck, and truck stops would not have to dig anything, they would use above ground tanks for the natural gas. Research it and you'll see how much common sense it would make.
At $30k each I can see where people might not want to make the conversion, especially if the fuel is not widely available. The start up costs across the board seem higher then continuing on as they are.
You didn't research this to find out how many cities have already switched to natural gas for their fleets, some many years ago with significant savings.
That's fine for cities with their own facility for refueling. I was thinking of the trucking industry as a whole and the lack of natural gas facilities along the interstate system.
As they said on Morning Joe, the costs are small compared to the benefits, therefore, it's just common sense.
Any business runs on profit, if that motivation is there then trucking companies should go for it. If they see problems with it they won't.
As my original post says in caps, it's more profitable the way it's done currently. Simply because natural gas is too cheap.
On the basis of what you've said I can easily agree. Apparently the trucking firms see some cost or reason not to make the switch.
The trucking firms understand the savings on fuel costs but the fuel companies would have to give their consent to truck stops supplying the nat gas. They won't do that because nat gas is too cheap. Trucking firms are like us, not powerful enough.