Governor John Hickenlooper recently joined twelve other governors in sending a letter to the chief executives of 19 auto companies, urging them to develop and manufacture vehicles that run on compressed natural gas.

Hickenlooper announced that the Governor’s Energy Office will work with the Colorado Municipal League to encourage municipalities throughout the state to participate in a multi-state agreement that he and Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin signed last fall to increase natural-gas vehicles in their fleets. Grand Junction on the West Slope has already beefed up the number of city sanitation trucks fueled by natural gas.

The hope is that increasing the number of natural-gas vehicles in the state fleets will be an incentive for auto manufacturers to do produce CNG and LNG-powered vehicles.

The Governor’s Energy Office said it will develop a purchasing mechanism for municipalities and “will work with the natural gas industry, fuel retailers and local governments to encourage the development of natural gas fueling facilities.”