Walmart has debuted the first North American 15.0L compressed natural gas engines incorporated into Walmart’s private fleet.  

The X15N engine is supplied by Cummins and fueled by Chevron with compressed natural gas linked to renewable natural gas. The Walmart truck will make its inaugural trip from Indiana to California, making pit stops to refuel at Chevron stations.

Walmart’s Road to Zero-Emissions

Last year, Walmart announced several first-of-their-kind initiatives among its Class 8 transportation fleet as the retailer pursues its goal to achieve zero emissions across global operations by 2040. And just in time for Earth Week, introducing this CNG-powered truck is an essential milestone in the retailer’s journey.

“Walmart transportation is focused on the continuous piloting of solutions that aren’t just changing the industry, but are having a lasting impact on the world,” said Fernando Cortes, senior vice president of transportation at Walmart. “We are proud to team with Cummins and Chevron to develop industry-leading advancements that pave toward a lower carbon future.”

Cummins Next-Generation 2024 X15N Engine 

While trucking has historically relied on diesel to fuel its engines, a move toward renewable natural gas is an important step toward lowering fleet emissions. Renewable natural gas is produced when biomethane from decomposing organic matter – such as cow manure or landfill waste – is captured, treated, and processed into natural gas. 

Methane that is not captured and processed is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2) at trapping heat within the atmosphere leading to climate change.

Coming to market in 2024, the X15N natural gas engine delivers diesel-like ratings as well as durability and reliability to allow fleets to significantly reduce their carbon footprint without sacrificing capability. From the platform’s inception, the X15N was designed by Cummins with spark ignition in mind. It offers the industry a solution for achieving sustainability goals, including the ability to run on renewable natural gas. 

“Working with partners like Walmart to test new products like the X15N gives Cummins valuable real-world data that helps us validate our engines before moving into full production,” said Puneet Jhawar, general manager – Spark Ignited Products for Cummins. “Chevron has also been very helpful in our test; to help increase CNG fuel availability that will enable adoption of alternate technologies faster.”

The engine’s exhaust flows through a passive and maintenance-free three-way catalyst from Cummins Emission Solutions for optimal simplicity. Natural gas fuel storage is represented by a full-scale display model of a Cummins Clean Fuel Technologies back-of-cab 175 diesel gallon equivalent system. 

“Chevron is constantly pursuing solutions that drive progress toward a lower carbon future,” said Andy Walz, Chevron’s president of Americas Products. “Partnering with Walmart and Cummins on the road trip and demonstration can help us deliver that progress today for the transportation, the industry, and customers who rely on all of our products to advance a lower carbon economy.”