LAKE CHARLES LNG PROJECT RECEIVES FERC APPROVAL
A Lake Charles, Louisiana, liquefied natural gas export project has received approval from the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Approval is the key remaining regulatory consent for the project, which BG Group is developing with Energy Transfer Equity LP and Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. The project has conditional authorization from the U.S. Department of Energy for the export of up to 2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, approximately 15 million metric tons of LNG per year.

“We are pleased to receive the approval from FERC, an important milestone as we progress the Lake Charles project towards a final investment decision,” says Helge Lund, CEO of BG Group. “By utilizing a brownfield site, and the ready supply of gas from the U.S. grid, Lake Charles LNG offers one of the largest and most competitive new LNG supply options in the marketplace.”

AUSTRALIA’S INFRATECH TO EXPORT SOLAR POWER SYSTEM TO U.S.
Infratech Industries, an Australian-owned and operated sustainable infrastructure company, has sold its floating solar system to the City of Holtville, California. The bulk of the system is being manufactured in Australia, and marks the first export from Australia of this technology. The deployment of the one-megawatt floating solar power system will generate 20 percent more power than a fixed land-based system and will power Holtville’s new water treatment facility.

“Our decision to use Infratech’s floating solar system means we are not losing valuable farmland to massive solar farms; we can use three existing ponds and save our soil for increasing our capacity to produce crops,” says David Bradshaw, assistant water manager for Imperial Irrigation District.

HUENEME COMMITS TO GREEN MARINE CERTIFICATION PROGRAM
The Port of Hueneme has signed on as a participant in Green Marine, the largest voluntary environmental certification program for the North American maritime industry. The program, which was created in 2007, “makes it possible for ports, terminal operators and shipping lines to voluntarily reduce their environmental footprint through a comprehensive program that addresses key environmental issues and criteria,” the port says.

Certification is based on 11 performance indicators including air emissions, community impacts and environmental leadership.

“We’re absolutely delighted to welcome Hueneme as the first port in California to join the Green Marine program,” says David Bolduc, executive director of Quebec, Canada-headquartered Green Marine. “We have no doubt that the administration of this deepwater port will enhance our membership by sharing its environmental initiatives and best practices.”

ABF LOGISTICS ACQUIRES BEAR TRANSPORTATION SERVICES
ABF Logistics has acquired Bear Transportation Services, L.P., a private, non-asset-based truckload brokerage firm headquartered in Plano, Texas, for $26 million. ABF Logistics has experienced rapid growth since it was formed in 2013 and this acquisition is the second of 2015, after its purchase of Oklahoma City-based Smart Lines Transportation Group in January 2015.

“We are pleased to find a strategic buyer with a strong culture and a clear growth plan,” says Mike Loehr, a principal owner of Bear Transportation. “Our employees and our customers will benefit from the resources and solutions ABF Logistics and the broader ArcBest organization will provide.”

UPS TO POWER ALTERNATIVE FUEL FLEET WITH NATURAL GAS FROM LANDFILLS
UPS will supply its fleet in Memphis, Tennessee, and Jackson, Mississippi, with an estimated 15 million diesel-gallon-gas equivalents of renewable natural gas (RNG) as part of a multi-year agreement with Memphis Light, Gas and Water and Atmos Energy Marketing, LLC. The deal is part of an initiative announced earlier this year by UPS to significantly expand its use of renewable natural gas in its alternative-fuel and advanced-technology fleet. The company has a goal of driving 1 billion miles with its alternative fuels fleet, known as the Rolling Laboratory, by the end of 2017—an effort that is reducing environmental impact and helping to advance new sustainability solutions and markets. The RNG will fuel more than 140 heavy-duty trucks in Memphis and Jackson, part of UPS’s natural gas fleet, which includes more than 3,800 medium- and heavy-duty vehicles worldwide.

“UPS operates one of the most diversified fleets in private industry today, and renewable natural gas is a critical part of our strategy to expand our fuel sources and minimize the environmental impact associated with growing customer demand,” says Mark Wallace, UPS senior vice president, Global Engineering and Sustainability. “We are using methane that otherwise would be released into the atmosphere as a greenhouse gas emission and converting it to power our trucks while helping to promote the use of this renewable fuel in transportation.”