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Sep 26, 2012 1:55 PM

Annual  worldwide sales of natural gas vehicles will more than double over the next  seven years, growing from less than 70,000 in 2012 to more than 180,000 in  2019, according to a new report from Pike Research, a part of  Navigant’s Energy Practice.

  “Even  if current low prices for natural gas rise, fleet operators remain keenly  interested in protecting themselves from the high cost of diesel fuel,” says  senior research analyst Dave Hurst. “This market is being driven by several key  sectors, in particular refuse trucks, utilities, transit, and, to a lesser  degree, construction. As those sectors grow, the fortunes of natural gas trucks  and buses will follow suit.”

  Growth  in NG trucks and buses will be strongest in the Asia Pacific region, which  according to the report is expected to outpace global growth. China’s market  for compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks will be strong, and China will lead the  liquid natural gas (LNG) truck segment with 94 percent of the market.

  While  LNG trucks in the United States are expected to grow faster than any other  natural gas vehicle segment, in the NG bus segment, fewer than 3,000 such  vehicles will be sold in the U.S. by 2019, the report finds. NG bus sales in  China will surpass 50,000 in 2019.

  The  report, “Natural Gas Trucks and Buses”, analyzes the global market  opportunity for natural gas vehicles in the medium- and heavy-duty truck and  bus markets. The report provides a comprehensive assessment of the current  market, fuel availability, demand drivers, policy factors, and technology  issues associated with the growth of these vehicles. Key industry players are  profiled in depth, and worldwide NG vehicle sales, vehicle segment sales, and  cumulative refueling station availability are forecast through 2019.

  An  Executive Summary of the report is available for free download at http://www.pikeresearch.com/research/natural-gas-trucks-and-buses.