A compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling station to support the Jacksonville (FL) Transportation Authority (JTA) conversion of its diesel bus fleet to operate on natural gas is to be provided under an $8.1 million contract with Newport Beach, CA-based Clean Energy Fuels Corp.

Clean Energy agreed to design, build and operate the CNG fueling facility and would include facility modifications to accommodate the CNG conversion.

Clean Energy used the deal to highlight its growth in its natural gas vehicle (NGV) fueling network, touting a 23% increase in vehicles it is fueling this year. In total, 5,510 additional NGVs began fueling nationwide at its facilities in 2014.

The fueling facility is set to be completed by late next year, supporting JTA’s conversion of 100 buses to CNG. When all of the buses are converted, the station is projected to provide 1 million diesel gallon equivalents (DGE) of CNG annually.

JTA anticipates saving $5.7 million over the life of the agreement in fuel and maintenance costs. Clean Energy would operate the new facility for public access. The contract also calls for Clean Energy technicians to retrofit the JTA maintenance facilities to accommodate the fleet.

JTA CEO Nathaniel Ford said the new facility “will reduce costs, improve the environment and create opportunities for other fleets in the area to convert to CNG.” The facility is expected to cut 2,318 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.

Separately, Clean Energy has renewed a maintenance contract with the Morongo Basin Transit Authority in Southern California, which operates a fleet of 28 CNG buses.