Cummins, Paccar announce natural gas engine partnership

Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks are on track to have Cummins natural gas engines.

Bellevue, Wash.-based Paccar Inc., which makes and markets Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks, and Columbus, Ohio-based Cummins Inc. recently announced the partnership in news releases.

The trucks will have the new Cummins X15N natural gas engine and integrate the Cummins Clean Fuel Technologies fuel delivery system.

The X15N is the first natural gas engine to be specifically designed for heavy-duty truck applications with up to 500 horsepower output, the companies state,

FedEx and Knight-Swift have lined up to demonstrate the ability to achieve lower carbon emissions for long-haul transport using internal combustion engine technology.

Knight-Swift also has agreed to test Cummins hydrogen fuel cell technology in semitrucks.

The X15N engine can operate on renewable natural gas, also known as biomethane. Doing so will help Peterbilt and Kenworth trucks reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the lifecyles of the trucks, the companies state. The emission reduction can range from 90% to carbon neutral, or even carbon negative, depending on the bio-source and waste feedstock used to produce the fuel, they claim.

The new engine is capable of lower nitrogen oxide levels than the 2024 Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resource Board standards.

The peak torque output provided by the X15N is estimated at 1,850 ft-lbs. The natural gas engine will reach optimal performance when paired with Eaton Cummins Automated Transmission Technologies HD and XD transmission.

“The X15N is essential to our commitment to help customers reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and to improve NOx. Importantly for the customer, the X15N will reduce the cost of adopting low emissions technologies for their fleet, and gives them the confidence to do so, built on the strong foundation of more than 30 years of experience with natural gas,” Srikanth Padmanabhan, Cummins vice president and president of Cummins Engine Business division, said in the news release.

Cummins reports that is has manufactured 85,000 natural gas engines.

Previous Cummins coverage

In recent months, Cummins has announced completing its Meritor acquisition, pushing ahead with hydrogen truck engines, and acquiring Jacobs Vehicle Systems, the original manufacturer of the Jake Brake. LL