BNSF Railway plans to test the use of natural gas as an alternative to power locomotives this year.
Matthew Rose, BNSF’s chief executive, announced the pilot project March 6.
“The use of liquefied natural gas as an alternative fuel is a potential transformational change for our railroad and for our industry,” said Rose in a prepared release.
The project will be the first step for BNSF to evaluate the technical and economic viability of using liquefied natural gas in through-freight service, potentially reducing fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions, according to the release.
BNSF has been working with two principal locomotive manufacturers, GE and EMD, a unit of Caterpillar, to develop the natural gas engine technology.
The former Burlington Northern used natural gas locomotives in the 1980s and 1990s.
The BNSF pilot will be a first step to consider how the technology could be implemented. However, the company says, even though natural gas in long-haul service has enormous potential, several significant regulatory challenges need to be addressed.