American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2014 - 148

ConventionSection: Virginia Oil & Gas Association

VOGA: NGVs Can Bridge
The Political Gap
By Corinne Westeman
RICHMOND, VA.-From natural gas
vehicles to infrastructure to incentives
for production, Virginia is benefitting
from and promoting the benefits of natural
gas, the Virginia Oil & Gas Association
says. Members are scheduled to delve
into the topic more during the association's
upcoming annual convention, June 2527 at Virginia Beach's newly finished
Hilton Garden Inn Oceanfront, VOGA
leadership reports.
Between its annual and midyear meetings, the association notes, it hosted the
Regional Natural Gas Vehicle Conference,
April 14-16 at the Richmond Convention
Center.
VOGA President Greg Kozera says
the conference was a great success, with
more than 200 attendees and 35 exhibitors from across the country, including Honda, General Motors, Volvo,
and the U.S. Department of Energy.
The West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas
Association has hosted the event previously and will be hosting the Expo
again in 2015. "In our association's 35
years, we never have hosted any large
regional conference," he says. "We have
held local conferences and a few oneday events; but we never have done
anything on this scope. We had a wonderful array of exhibitors and several
talented and engaging speakers."
Virginia Clean Cities, a group that focuses on local energy efficiency, cohosted the event, says Beth Stockner,
VOGA's public relations manager, and
attendees had the opportunity to examine
several compressed natural gas and liquefied natural gas vehicles that exhibitors
displayed.
Kozera remarks that Virginia CNG
prices as low as $1.24 a gasoline gallon
equivalent (gge) in mid-May offer NGVs
an eye-catching economic advantage.
"It's something to get excited about," he
emphasizes.
Richmond was chosen as the host city
because it offered easy access for exhibitors
and attendees, Kozera says; but also because it provided VOGA with additional

opportunities for education and outreach.
"We do not reach out much to eastern
Virginia," he acknowledges. "Most (industry) activity is in southwestern Virginia;
so many people in Richmond and the
Washington area are not familiar with
production. What they see in the media
is what they get, but this gave us the
chance to be seen-and to be seen promoting products that cross political barriers, such as CNG and LNG vehicles."
Kozera states many people who do
not see production's positive impacts
firsthand tend to focus on concerns about
hydraulic fracturing. But NGVs allow
the industry to bridge the conversation
and focus more on the positives that
garner widespread support, he says.
"NGVs are one of the first and best
ways we can connect to the public," he
elaborates. "I spoke on a local public
radio show and I mentioned NGVs and
using Virginia's natural gas supply for
transportation. The host was so very excited to hear that our member companies
were paying $1.24 a gge for natural gas
that he completely forgot about hydraulic
fracturing, and for the next 15 minutes,
all we talked about was NGVs."
Leading By Example
Kozera indicates he wants VOGA
members, himself included, to lead by
example when it comes to buying and
using NGVs. He says he is trying to get
more member companies, especially these
with large fleets, to switch to natural gas
or dual-fuel vehicles.
"Sadly, our challenge as an industry
is 'What do we do to move this thing
forward?'" Kozera continues. "There are
clearly people who have the expertise to
convert or manufacture NGVs, such as
Ford and Honda, and we have people
who are putting in the stations and necessary infrastructure. But we cannot expect
the public to convert until we do."
Several VOGA member companies
have converted their fleets to NGVs, he
says, and Kozera says he is shopping for
one himself. "Unfortunately, I can't have
a solely gas-powered vehicle, because if
I travel to Southwest Virginia or out of

148 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

state, there would not be the necessary
refueling stations," he comments. "So, I
am looking into a dual-fuel for my personal
vehicle. I believe Chevrolet is making a
few dual-fuel Tahoes, and other companies
will have similar models."
The NGV conference seemed to
achieve its goal to bring company fleet
managers together with manufacturers
and fueling station representatives, Kozera
describes, but he wonders aloud if VOGA
is talking to the correct people.
"The fleet manager can come to conferences such as ours and get excited
about the options," he says. "But he still
has to get someone's approval. So, we as
an industry think maybe we ought to
focus on company executives. Maybe we
should market our messages to them."
Even better than natural gas's abundant
supply and low cost, Kozera says, is its
price stability, which he suggests company
executives will welcome. NGV fleets will
reduce fuel costs and allow companies to
predict and account for their fuel costs
three-five years ahead, he explains.
"That is a big deal because every company running a fleet on diesel or gasoline
has no clue what fuel is going to cost
five years from now," he notes. "Giving
them that stability makes them more
competitive in their industry, and it helps
the American public because those fuel
surcharges for delivery costs will go
down."
Kozera says VOGA's leadership can
play an important role in spreading the
good news about NGVs because the association is geographically close to Washington. Although the association is small
compared with its counterparts in many
other states, it has forged strong relationships with many in Congress, he elaborates. "If we can drive that message of
clean, abundant American fuel, maybe
we can get Congress to listen and encourage this fuel alongside us," he continues.
Incentives, Legislation
The Virginia legislative session ended
in mid-April, Kozera confirms, and lawmakers were able to pass several NGV

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