Nopetro LLC is opening a compressed natural gas facility in Tallahassee, Fla., which it says for the first time offers the state and the Southeast the prospect of a viable natural gas solution.

The station is part of a planned regional network for government and commercial fleets as well as individual CNG vehicle owners.

The Tallahassee facility is the product of a partnership between the public and private sectors. The school district is converting its entire fleet of diesel-powered school buses to CNG, and other public and private consumers may also fuel their CNG vehicles at the station. A portion of each sale will benefit the school district.

Nopetro identified 18 additional cities it is targeting over the next three years, including Daytona Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Fort Pierce, Gainesville, Jacksonville, Key Largo, Miami, Ocala, Orlando, Pensacola, Sarasota, St. Augustine, Tampa and West Palm Beach in Florida, and Atlanta, Macon and Savannah in Georgia.

Florida's Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Commissioner Adam Putnam praised Nopetro and the Leon County School District for forging a partnership to produce substantial cost savings for public schools while setting a positive, environmentally friendly example for students.

"This partnership is exactly what our Legislature had in mind when it established natural gas as a key component of the state's transportation policies," Putnam said. "A network of natural gas fueling stations in major cities across our state will encourage commercial fleets and individual consumers to make the move into Florida's energy future."

This network of stations will make it possible for heavy truck traffic, local government vehicles and school buses to convert to natural gas, a fuel source that is domestically abundant and at least 25% cheaper and 33% cleaner than diesel fuel, says the company.