Cummins ‘Pauses’ Development of 15L Nat-Gas Engine

Image
Tom Strickland/Bloomberg News

Engine maker Cummins Inc. confirmed that it has “paused” the development of its planned 15-liter natural-gas engine due to “market timing uncertainty.”

The company said it will re-evaluate the demand and the market’s readiness for the ISX15 G later this year.

“While we believe natural gas power will continue to grow in the North American truck market, the timing of the adoption of natural gas in longhaul fleets preferring 15-liter engines is uncertain,” spokeswoman Christy Nycz House said in a statement. “We believe the adoption of natural gas in long haul fleets will be paced by a variety of factors beyond the engine and include fuel tank technology and public fueling infrastructure.”

The ISX15 G, first announced in March 2012, would be a spark-ignited engine that could run on either compressed or liquefied natural gas.



Cummins currently offers two natural-gas engines for heavy-duty trucks through its joint venture with Westport Innovations — the 12-liter Cummins Westport ISX12 G, launched last year, and the 9-liter ISL G.

Cummins was developing the ISX15 G outside of that joint venture.