VESTAVIA HILLS, Ala. (AP) - Motorists on Interstate 65 in Alabama will be able to fill up next year with cleaner burning fuels produced in America, Gov. Bob Riley said Wednesday.
Speaking at a gas station in Vestavia Hills, the governor said service stations there and in three other cities along I-65 - Athens, Cullman and Mobile - will have pumps installed in the next eight months to make cleaner burning E85 and B20 biodiesel commercially available to the public.
“These cleaner, more secure American sources of energy are going to be available to most Alabamians for the very first time,” Riley said. “Alternative fuels are not only better for our natural environment, they also help make us more energy independent.”
The money for the project is coming from a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. The $312,000 grant covers up to 50 percent of the cost for a retailer to add the necessary infrastructure.
A second federal $112,500 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission will be used to help up to 30 service stations offer B20 biodiesel along Corridor X in northwest Alabama and the north Alabama corridor of state route 24 and U.S. 72.
E85 is a cleaner burning mix of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline that can be used in “flex fuel” vehicles, which can run on either E85 or conventional gasoline. Biodiesels are produced from soybean and other crops and can be used in conventional compression-ignition engines like diesels without engine modifications.
Three stations being built to make alternative fuels available are expected to be open by April, including stations at 1700 U.S. 72 in Athens, 371 Super Saver Road in Cullman; a location to be determined at I-10 and I-65 in Mobile. The fourth station will be the Shell at 1488 Montgomery Highway in Vestavia Hills, which should have fuels available in July.
