Greater Indiana Honors Alternative Fuel Transportation Leaders At Annual Awards Reception

INDIANAPOLIS, December 12, 2022 – Greater Indiana Clean Cities, Inc. (Greater Indiana) announced the 2022 Alternative Fuel Transportation Leaders at its Annual Awards Reception held in downtown Indianapolis. The reception was sponsored by Citizens Energy Group, EZ-EV by Tesco, McGavic Outdoor Power, Indiana Corn Marketing Council, Indiana Soybean Alliance, and UAW Region 2B. Ben Wrightsman, CEO of the Battery Innovation Center and Chairperson of the Indiana EV Product Commission and Craig Moore, Vice President, and Chief Commercial Officer RNG at Kinetrex Energy, a Kinder Morgan Company, were among the featured speakers who helped kick off the reception.

Each year, Greater Indiana recognizes outstanding contributions to advancing the organization’s mission. The awards are given annually to organizations and individuals in the following areas: Alternative Fueling Stations (biodiesel, electric, propane, CNG, etc.), Green Fleet/Clean Fleet Initiatives, Fuel Economy and/or Idle Reduction Programs, Clean Air Champions, Alternative Fuel Leaders, and Driver of Change (person/company large project/program outreach).

This year leaders include Bill Rogers, Fleet Administrator for the City of Indianapolis; Scott Manning, Deputy Chief of Staff at the Indiana Department of Transportation; the American Lung Association; IUPUI Campus Facility Services, Grounds Department; Kinetrex Energy, a Kinder Morgan Company, Indiana Michigan Power, and the City of Bloomington. Crit Crabtree, Manager of Engineering and Plant Engineering for Citizens Energy Group, was recognized for his Outstanding Leadership on the Board of Directors for Greater Indiana.

“We have the privilege of recognizing some excellent organizations, people, and companies – demonstrating leadership and commitment to using alternative fuels and vehicles,” said Kerri Garvin, Executive Director of Greater Indiana. “Through the use and support of alternative fuels in Indiana, the awardees improve the health of all Hoosiers by reducing transportation emissions while also supporting our local economy.”

Greater Indiana Awardees by category include:

Left to right: Kaylee May, Greater Indiana; Bill Rogers, City of Indianapolis; Kerri Garvin and Abhishek Jagdale, Greater Indiana.

Driver of Change: Bill Rogers

Bill has been managing fleets for the past 38 years, spending over 22 years in fleet services for the City of Indianapolis. During his time serving as the Fleet Administrator for the City of Indianapolis, he played an integral role in reducing emissions for the City fleet through the use of alternative fuels. Indianapolis has been a long-time user of biodiesel and, under his guidance, is looking at other ways to reduce emissions and increase cost savings with additional alternative fuels. Under Bill’s leadership, the City of Indianapolis Department of Public Works was named a 2022 Leading Fleet by Government Fleet magazine.

Left to right: Scott Manning, Indiana Department of Transportation; Kerri Garvin, Greater Indiana.

Electric Vehicle Leadership: Scott Manning, INDOT

The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program is funded by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and provides dedicated funding to States to strategically deploy EV charging infrastructure and establish an interconnected network to facilitate data collection, access, and reliability. With four short months to allocate resources for a transformational investment for Indiana, Scott Manning mobilized the administration, contractors, and community stakeholders to ensure Indiana did not miss out on this once- in-a-generation opportunity. Ultimately, the plan Scott’s team prepared was federally approved, ensuring Indiana receives NEVI funds to put all Hoosiers within 40 miles of an EV charging station. This will dramatically change the alternative fuel landscape of Indiana.

Clean Air Champion – Biofuels: The American Lung Association

Biobased Academy® is a comprehensive training program designed to educate fleet and facility professionals and technicians on the operational, health, safety, and environmental benefits of biobased fleet and facilities products. The American

Lung Association, in partnership with the United Soybean Board, offers the program. The online training provides easy access, an at-your-own-pace learning schedule, and all the information fleet professionals need to integrate biobased products into their operations. The program kicked off in September and has already certified 14 fleet professionals.

Left to right: Jessica Davis, Indiana University Sustainability Department; Jesse Beck, Clay Collins, and Josh Miller, IUPUI Grounds Department.

Best Achievement – Electric: IUPUI Campus Facility Services, Grounds Department

In April 2019, IUPUI Campus Facility Services, Grounds Department won $12,000 in funding through the Greening IUPUI Grant to bring fully electric grounds equipment to the IUPUI campus for the first time. The $12,000 supported the procurement of electric hand-held equipment.

Stemming from the success of the hand-held electric equipment, IUPUI replaced two diesel-powered zero-turn mowers with a 100% electric Commercial mower. Over the course of one mowing season IUPUI Campus Facility Services, Grounds Department:

• Reduced 43,000 lbs. of CO2
• Reduced fuel use by 194 gallons
• Saved $1,575 per year in maintenance

Saved an estimated $2,157 per year in fuel costsThe total predicted savings over a 7-year lifecycle (assuming $3/gallon fuel cost) will be $11,099.

Left to right: Kerri Garvin, Greater Indiana; Craig Moore, Kinetrex Energy, a Kinder Morgan Company.

Clean Air Champion – RNG: Kinetrex Energy, a Kinder Morgan Company

Originally founded in 2013, Kinetrex established itself as the leading provider of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the Midwest by serving diverse industries, including transportation, asphalt, agriculture, utilities, and industrial. Kinetrex Energy added renewable natural gas (RNG) development to its capabilities in June 2019 and broke ground on the largest RNG plant in Indiana, Indy High BTU, with operations beginning a year later.

With their unique, vertically integrated platform and unmatched ability to execute, combined with Kinder Morgan’s size, scale, and financial stability, the company began to rapidly expand its RNG operations after the acquisition in August 2021. Construction on three RNG plants in Indiana commenced in 2022. The company also completed the acquisitions of Mas CanAm and North American Natural Resources, Inc. (NANR) and its sister companies, North American Biofuels, LLC and North American-Central, LLC. Collectively, these projects will grow the RNG portfolio to produce approximately 7.7 billion cubic feet upon completion of the current projects.

From left to right: Abhishek Jagdale, Greater Indiana; William Tokash, Indiana Michigan Power; Kaylee May, and Kerri Garvin, Greater Indiana.

Clean Air Champion – Utility: Indiana Michigan Power

The IM Plugged In program, under Indiana Michigan Power, offers incentives to Indiana residential customers for installing charging equipment. Participating customers also receive discounted rates for charging their EVs overnight. IM Plugged In makes charging EVs more affordable and inviting to Hoosier customers as they choose their transportation options. I&M offers Hoosiers a $500 incentive toward the cost of wiring a residential EV meter. The rebate helps reduce the costs of

installing a charger to take advantage of lower rates and is available to Indiana customers for new and existing equipment.

IM Plugged In has a separate program that helps business customers provide charging to their employees and for their fleet vehicles. The IM Plugged In commercial rebate is $250 for each charging port installed at qualified businesses. Incentives are also available for multi-unit apartment buildings. Indiana Michigan Power’s EV programs are helping to remove barriers for Hoosiers interested in purchasing electric vehicles and installing charging equipment in their homes and businesses.

From left to right: Alex Crowley, City of Bloomington Sustainability Department; Kerri Garvin, Greater Indiana.

Leadership in Public Service – Transportation: The City of Bloomington

The City of Bloomington developed a thorough Sustainability Action Plan. The plan is a five-year framework for their sustainability strategy that identifies both short- and long-term goals and actions in City operations and within the broader community. Within the plan, Bloomington has identified a number of transportation- related goals. In particular, the City aims to support and encourage electric vehicle and alternative fuel (hybrid/ hybrid electric, plug-in hybrid electric) vehicle adoption citywide. The community further supports the installation of additional EV charging stations within the urban area in preparation for a new generation of personal, commercial, and fleet vehicles. The City has begun to increase publicly available EV charging stations in the 4th street and Trades Garages with the help of VW mitigation Grant Funding.

Left to right: Larry Campbell, City of Fort Wayne; Helena Jette (Greater IN Board President), IN Corn Marketing Council and IN Soybean Alliance; Crit Crabtree, Citizens Energy Group.

Outstanding Board Leadership: Crit Crabtree

Crit joined Greater Indiana’s board of directors in 2020 and quickly began getting acquainted with the staff and pressing topics for the organization, taking the time to learn about the operations. As a seasoned operations manager with more than 25 years of experience impacting organizational performance through the execution of multimillion-dollar construction operations, financial management, business development, short- and long-term strategic planning, and project management – Greater Indiana was happy to have him join the team. It wasn’t long before he connected the organization to opportunities, sharing tips and advice and being a sounding board for staff when needed. He has strengthened the relationship and work with one of the organization’s longest-standing member companies and continues to engage with the Greater Indiana staff on a regular basis.