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EnCana wants $1 B from Ottawa for natural gas stations

CALGARY — The Globe and Mail says EnCana Corp., one of Canada’s biggest energy companies, is asking Ottawa for $1 billion to kick-start a transformation of the country’s highways.

CALGARY — The Globe and Mail says EnCana Corp., one of Canada’s biggest energy companies, is asking Ottawa for $1 billion to kick-start a transformation of the country’s highways.

Over the past few months, EnCana (TSX:ECA) has been in talks with government officials about a plan to build a network of hundreds of compressed and liquid natural gas fuelling stations between Windsor, Ont. and Quebec City, Canada’s busiest highway corridor.

EnCana, one of the continent’s biggest suppliers of natural gas, is also pushing Ottawa to create tax incentives for trucking companies that convert their 18-wheelers from diesel to natural gas engines.

The company has been working together with Westport Innovations Inc., a maker of natural-gas-powered truck engines, and the Canadian Natural Gas Vehicle Alliance to convince the Conservative government to include the spending item in its spring budget.

Asked about the proposal, a spokesperson for Natural Resources Canada said its “interest and assessment in all alternative and renewable transportation fuels is ongoing.”

Eric Marsh, EnCana’s executive vice-president of natural gas economy, says they are exploring ways to make natural gas an acceptable fuel for the future.”