Investment will establish a commercial fueling network for
heavy-duty natural gas trucks across Western Canada
CALGARY,
AB, April 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/
- Tourmaline Oil Corp. (TSX: TOU) ("Tourmaline") and
Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) ("Clean Energy")
announced today a $70 million Joint
Development Agreement to build and operate a network of compressed
natural gas ("CNG") stations along key highway corridors
across Western Canada. Through
this 50-50 shared investment, Tourmaline and Clean Energy expect to
construct and commission up to 20 CNG stations over the next five
years, which will allow heavy-duty trucks and other commercial
transportation fleets that operate in the area to transition to the
use of CNG, a lower carbon alternative to gasoline and diesel.
Clean Energy will operate the stations. One of North America's largest logistics companies,
Mullen Group Ltd. ("Mullen Group"), has indicated its
support for the initiative as an early adopter and expects to use
the network of stations to fuel its growing fleet of CNG-powered
trucks.
"Tourmaline is Canada's largest
natural gas producer, and innovation is at the heart of everything
we do. So this partnership with Clean Energy is a natural fit,"
said Michael Rose, Chairman,
President and CEO, Tourmaline. "Across our operations, we have
achieved significant emission reductions and cost savings by
displacing higher-emitting fuels with natural gas. Thanks to this
exciting initiative, we're able to help the transportation industry
do the same."
This initiative will develop critical infrastructure needed to
support the adoption of lower-carbon natural gas fuels that are
commercially available today. The use of this domestic, abundantly
produced and easily distributed resource is expected to result in
significant carbon dioxide (CO2) emission reductions and
cost savings for the transportation industry in Canada. Currently, fueling vehicles with CNG
results in up to 50% cost savings when compared to retail diesel
prices, on an energy equivalent basis. These CNG stations also pave
the way for renewable natural gas (RNG) availability in the future,
as the same fueling-station infrastructure that dispenses CNG can
be used to dispense RNG.
"Clean Energy currently operates the most extensive network of
natural gas fueling stations and is the largest distributor of RNG
in North America. We continue to
invest in upstream production of RNG and the fueling infrastructure
needed to provide the trucking industry a cleaner alternative of
operating," said Andrew Littlefair,
President and CEO, Clean Energy. "This new partnership with
Tourmaline will provide Canada's
trucking industry with an economical, convenient, and sustainable
pathway to net zero and will contribute to Canada's overarching climate change goal.
"As one of North America's
largest logistics providers, the Mullen Group is committed to being
a leader in sustainability. We are excited to support this
initiative. We have already made a significant investment in CNG
trucks and are extremely confident that this technology will play a
huge role in the decarbonization of our industry," said
Murray Mullen, Chair, SEO and
President, Mullen Group.
Based on the anticipated commissioning of up to 20 stations over
the next five years, approximately 3,000 natural gas-powered trucks
could be fueled using CNG every day, resulting in a reduction of
approximately 72,800 tonnes of CO2 equivalent
usage per year. This is equivalent to removing 15,690 passenger
vehicles from the road. As future demand increases, the capacity of
these stations can be expanded, and new stations added, which would
result in greater environmental performance improvement.
"This is an exciting development for Alberta's energy and transportation industries
and a major step toward a lower-emission future for all Canadians,"
said Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. "As Tourmaline and Clean Energy
collaborate to make CNG readily available for heavy-haul
trucks, we applaud their innovative thinking and support this
free-market approach to significantly reducing emissions."
The first station expected to be jointly owned under the
agreement, located north of Edmonton, is operational and well-positioned
for heavy-haul transport routes with close proximity to key
customers and stakeholders. The next stations which Tourmaline and
Clean Energy expect to commission in the first half of 2024 are
anticipated to be located within the municipalities of Calgary and Grande
Prairie in Alberta and
Kamloops, B.C.
About Tourmaline Oil Corp.
Tourmaline is Canada's largest
and most active natural gas producer dedicated to producing the
lowest-emission and lowest-cost natural gas in North America. The investment-grade
exploration and production company provides strong and predictable
operating and financial performance through the development of
three core areas in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. With an
existing large reserve base, decades-long drilling inventory,
relentless focus on execution and cost management, and
industry-leading environmental performance, Tourmaline is excited
to provide shareholders with an excellent return on capital and an
attractive source of income through base dividend and surplus-free
cash flow distribution strategies. Visit www.tourmalineoil.com and
follow @tourmalineoilcorp on Linkedin and Facebook and
@tourmalineoil on Twitter.
About Clean Energy Fuels Corp.
Clean Energy Fuels Corp. is North
America's largest provider of the cleanest fuel for the
transportation market. Our mission is to reduce emissions in the
transportation industry through the development and delivery
of renewable natural gas (RNG), a sustainable fuel
derived from organic waste. Clean Energy allows thousands of
vehicles, from airport shuttles to city buses to waste and
heavy-duty trucks, to reduce their amount of climate-harming
greenhouse gas. We operate a vast network of fueling
stations across the U.S. and Canada.
Visit www.cleanenergyfuels.com and
follow @ce_renewables on Twitter.
For further information, please contact:
Tourmaline Oil Corp.
Michael Rose
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
(403) 266-5992
OR
Tourmaline Oil Corp.
Brian Robinson
Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer
(403) 767-3587; brian.robinson@tourmalineoil.com
OR
Tourmaline Oil Corp.
Scott Kirker
Chief Legal Officer
(403) 767-3593; scott.kirker@tourmalineoil.com
OR
Tourmaline Oil Corp.
Jamie Heard
Manager, Capital Markets
(403) 767-5942; jamie.heard@tourmalineoil.com
OR
Tourmaline Oil Corp.
Suite 2900, 250 – 6th Avenue S.W.
Calgary, Alberta T2P
3H7
Phone: (403) 266-5992; Facsimile: (403) 266-5952
E-mail: info@tourmalineoil.com
Website: www.tourmalineoil.com
For Clean Energy specific media inquiries,
please contact:
Clean Energy Fuels Corp.
Raleigh Gerber
Director, Corporate Communications
949-437-1397; raleigh.gerber@cleanenergyfuels.com
Reader Advisories
Currency
All amounts in this joint news release are stated in Canadian
dollars unless otherwise specified.
Forward-Looking Information
This joint news release contains forward-looking information and
statements (collectively, "forward-looking information") within the
meaning of applicable securities laws including Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 that involve risks, uncertainties and
assumptions, including without limitation information and
statements about: the benefits of the joint development agreement
including that the investment pursuant to the agreement will result
in a commercial fueling network for heavy-duty natural gas trucks
across Western Canada and critical
infrastructure needed to support the adoption of low-carbon natural
gas fuels and result in significant CO2 emission reductions and
cost savings for the transportation industry in Canada including the amounts of reduction and
savings; the number of CNG stations proposed to be
constructed, the timeframe for such construction and the
anticipated investment pursuant to the joint development agreement;
the expectation that Mullen Group will use the network of stations
to fuel its growing fleet of CNG-powered trucks; the
expectations that the CNG stations will pave the way for RNG
availability in the future; the timing and location for the next
CNG stations that Tourmaline and Clean Energy expect to open; and
the environmental and other benefits of CNG and CNG Stations
generally. Actual results and the timing of events could differ
materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking
information. The forward-looking information made herein speak only
as of the date of this joint press release and, unless otherwise
required by law, neither Tourmaline nor Clean Energy undertakes any
obligation to publicly update such forward-looking information to
reflect subsequent events or circumstances. Additional information
on these and other factors that could affect Tourmaline, or its
operations or financial results, are included in Tourmaline's most
recently filed Management's Discussion and Analysis (See
"Forward-Looking Statements" therein), Annual Information Form (See
"Risk Factors" and "Forward-Looking Statements" therein) and other
reports on file with applicable securities regulatory authorities
and may be accessed through the SEDAR website (www.sedar.com) or
Tourmaline's website (www.tourmalineoil.com). Additionally, the
reports and other documents Clean Energy files with the SEC
(available at www.sec.gov) contain risk factors, which may cause
actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking
information contained in this joint news release.
Market, Independent Third-Party and Industry
Data
Certain information contained in this joint news release
relating to environmental or statistical data including the cost
savings associated with fueling vehicles with CNG instead of retail
diesel prices and the CO2 reduction equivalents of removing
passenger vehicles from the road have been derived from market,
independent third-party and industry data and is based upon, or
derived from, information or estimates from government or other
independent industry publications and reports. Government and
industry publications and reports generally indicate that they have
obtained their information from sources believed to be reliable,
but neither Tourmaline nor Clean Energy has conducted its own
independent verification of such information or ascertained the
underlying assumptions relied upon by such sources. While
Tourmaline and Clean Energy believes this data to be reliable,
market and industry data is subject to variations and cannot be
verified with complete certainty due to limits on the availability
and reliability of raw data, the voluntary nature of the data
gathering process and other limitations and uncertainties inherent
in any statistical survey.
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tourmaline-and-clean-energy-announce-70-million-joint-development-agreement-to-build-cng-stations-in-western-canada-301800657.html
SOURCE Tourmaline Oil Corp.