AT&T plan for green vehicles under way

AT&T Inc. said Tuesday that its plan is under way to cut fuel costs and carbon emissions by converting 15,000 vehicles to alternative fuel, with 600 compressed natural gas vehicles ready by the end of the year.

AT&T is working with Dallas-based BAF Technologies to convert the vehicles and expects 8,000 CNG vehicles to be completed over the next five years at a cost of $350 million to AT&T. The plan to convert 15,000 of the company's 86,000-vehicle fleet to alternative fuel sources was announced in March and will cost AT&T $565 million total.

"Rome wasn't built in a day," said Charlene Lake, AT&T senior vice president of public affairs and chief sustainability officer. "This is the first step in helping this country reduce foreign oil dependence."

AT&T projects that over the 10-year implementation of the plan, 49 million gallons of gasoline and 211,000 metric tons of carbon emissions will be saved. Lake said because of volatile energy prices, she was unsure of the fuel cost savings, but there was "no question overhead costs are going to be reduced."

AT&T's actions are in line with the plan put forth by energy investor T. Boone Pickens in which he advocates that more vehicles be converted to natural gas. Lake said Pickens "pointed out the potential and merit of the idea."

John Bacon, president of BAF Technologies, said that of the 600 Ford E-series CNG vans to be completed before the end of the year, 70 will most likely stay in the Dallas area. He said 200 of the green vehicles are completed and they could be deployed as early as the middle of this month.