EUGENE, Ore. – John Anderson, owner of Travelcard Commercial Fueling in Eugene, sees the future of fueling, and it’s in CNG.

The Register Guard writes that Anderson has opened up the first 24/7 public compressed natural gas fueling station in the state after quietly dispensing CNG to a small number of vehicles for a few months prior to last week’s grand opening.

Anderson told the newspaper that he invested almost half a million dollars in the new station because he believes it’s the right thing to do. “I’m thin-skinned. I really get tired of people calling me a polluter, saying I’m contributing to global warming,” he said. “Now I can say I’ve spent more money than most people to clean up our community’s environment.”

He also said that although he’s not expecting to get rich on his investment, he sees a future where CNG is a viable fueling option, which he says is now often 50% less expensive than gasoline. Last week Anderson’s price for CNG was $2.29 per gallon, while the average price per gallon for regular gasoline in his area was about $3.92.

“We will just begin to see the benefit in our lifetime,” Anderson told the newspaper, adding, “My daughter, nieces and nephews are going to be the generation where CNG is as common as traditional gasoline is today.”

Following the grand opening event last week, Anderson said he was “heartened” by the crowd that showed up, an estimated 200 to 300 people. “I’ve been to a lot of other alternative fuel events,” he told the newspaper, adding that the “vast majority of attendees were public attendees — city officials, university people. Well over half the people who came (to the station’s opening) were private industry individuals. Our customers came here wanting to be educated in the application to their fleet.”

Anderson said that cost of installing the station came in lower than the original estimate of $800,000 to $1 million, and he is looking into securing a state grant to offset some of the cost.