Nortrans, a freight and logistics company in British Columbia, has converted seven of its fleet of trucks to compressed natural gas with Green Freight Program Stream 2 funding.
Nortrans Freight Management is steering toward a cleaner future using compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, with funding from Stream 2 of Natural Resources Canada’s Green Freight Program (GFP). This stream provides funding to help fleets, like Nortrans, repower existing trucks, purchase low-carbon vehicles, and adopt logistical best practices.
Nortrans is a freight transportation and logistics company based in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley since 1992. Over the years, the company has expanded its services while emphasizing reliability, long-term partnerships, and sustainability.
Those values led the company to research alternatives that could save fuel and lower greenhouse gas emissions for their fleet of 50 diesel powered trucks.
The trucks need to haul loads weighing more than 60,000 kilograms, including forestry products and aluminum and steel, which exceeds the current capacity of battery electric vehicles.
Compressed natural gas (CNG) is stored in high-pressure tanks and used to power vehicles. Compared to diesel, CNG produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions and significantly less nitrogen oxide (NOx)—a major contributor to smog—while still delivering the power needed for heavy freight at a lower fuel cost.
"We needed more power and range than a battery electric truck could offer and compressed natural gas was seen as a bridge technology that would let us lower emissions with little impact to our existing operations,” says Rav Matharoo, Nortrans operations manager.
When Nortrans’ General Manager Alex Norman heard about NRCan's GFP Stream 2 in 2023, he said it was the perfect opportunity to turn their research into a reality, and lower the risk of investing in a new technology.
With NRCan funding, Nortrans will replace seven diesel trucks with CNG powered vehicles. The first CNG truck hit the road in 2025, and six more are scheduled for delivery in 2026.
Collaboration has been central to Nortrans' fuel-switching journey, bringing together key partners—from the original equipment manufacturer of the vehicle and the engine producer to the natural gas utility and the refuelling station provider.
Since Nortrans’ deployment of the Kenworth T880 natural gas trucks with the Cummins X15N engine, Alex says they have been fielding calls from peers in the freight industry curious about the transition. They're being asked about everything from vehicle performance to driver feedback and cost implications.
Rav reports that the rollout has gone smoothly. Drivers, many of whom have decades of experience with diesel-powered trucks, are pleased with the new CNG trucks’ reliable performance whether fully loaded or empty.
While Stream 2 of the Green Freight Program is not accepting new applications, Natural Resources Canada continues to offer free resources for more efficient fleets through the SmartDriver training program and the SmartWay benchmarking program.