Industry’s first fuel-agnostic internal combustion engine platform leverages a range of lower carbon fuel types
Global power technology leader Cummins announced this week its commitment to invest $1 billion to support the innovation and production of the trucking industry’s first fuel-agnostic internal combustion engine. The new engine will enable a shift to lower carbon fuel types. This is a significant step to counter climate change as Cummins’ engines are in more than half of all medium-and heavy-duty trucks on the road in the U.S. today.
To mark this, President Biden made a visit to Cummins in Fridley, Minnesota on Monday as part of his Administration’s Investing in America tour.
“I am delighted that we will have the chance to show President Biden the innovative work we are doing at our Fridley plant and our incredible Cummins employees who are doing it,” said Jennifer Rumsey, Cummins President and CEO. “In just a few weeks, we will begin manufacturing one of the key pieces of technology for green hydrogen production that will help decarbonize our economy and drive the clean energy transition – the electrolyzer.”
President Biden’s visit to the facility spotlighted his Investing in America agenda that supports manufacturing, innovation and a clean energy economy. He also touted that investments such as the $1 billion made by Cummins are a source of good-paying jobs in communities across the country.
This very sizable investment will be spread over Cummins’ U.S. engine manufacturing network in Indiana, North Carolina and New York. Upgrades to those facilities will support the changeover of production to the new engine platforms that will use natural gas, diesel and eventually hydrogen. This lays out a path to innovatively decarbonize the nation’s truck fleets.
“The historic investments included in those pieces of legislation played a key role in our decision to manufacture products here in the U.S., creating more clean-tech jobs and positively impacting our communities,” Rumsey added. “The electrolyzer production in Minnesota and investment in our Indiana, North Carolina and New York facilities are reflective of our dual path approach of advancing both engine-based and zero-emission solutions – an approach that is best for all of our stakeholders and our impact on the planet.”
On the job side of the equation, the investment will importantly retain thousands of current engineering and manufacturing jobs, as well as create hundreds of new jobs in the states where the company has a footprint.
The Jamestown Engine Plant (JEP) located in western New York state will receive $452 million to upgrade the facility to produce the industry’s first-fuel agnostic internal combustion engine. Customers are already lined up to test the new engine. Walmart , Werner, Matheson, among others, are now starting to test the very first engines and Walmart will be part of the very first field test unit later in April that will run on renewable natural gas.
Rumsey recognizes how critical the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act are in moving the United States forward toward a clean energy economy. The legislation supported Cummins’ innovation of a decarbonizing engine and its efforts to launch it into the trucking industry.
