SRC technology targets India's natural gas market: by 2004, the world's largest natural gas bus fleet--composed of approximately 7,500 compressed natural gas vehicles--could be found in Delhi, India. Delhi and Mumbai also possess vast numbers of natural gas-powered taxis and autorickshaws. What's the Saskatchewan connection?

Transportation growth worldwide is facing a crisis and highly populous countries like China, India, and Brazil are turning to natural gas for a solution.

In 2002, the Supreme Court of India mandated that all buses in its third largest city be converted to run on cleaner-burning compressed natural gas (CNG).

Nineteen months following the conversion mandate, India's government introduced a program setting out strict Euro IV vehicular emission norms for 11 cities by 2010. Those 11 cities comprised most of India's bus market, averaging about 25,000 new buses annually.

Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) wants to service this extensive market.

SRC hopes to "work with original equipment manufacturers in India to develop alternative fuel engine management systems for Indian-made vehicles using SRC know-how and technology," said Craig Murray, SRC's VP of Alternative Energy and Manufacturing. "The goal is to develop engine control systems for hydrogen, natural gas, diesel and gasoline fuelled vehicles specifically for India but based on systems we have already developed here in Canada."

Why would India choose Canadian technology? While the country's automotive industry is advanced, it has not developed indigenous fuel injection technology. The systems it now buys are "black boxes."

"The vendors maintain all knowledge about what's going on inside, whereas we are willing to share our expertise with them," said Murray.

Thanks to India's new policies, there is high demand in that country. With the financial cost of natural gas less than half that of diesel, demand is also growing for use in the country's private vehicles.

The environmental cost of CNG is lower as well. Natural gas is a cleaner burning fuel, with about 28 per cent less greenhouse gas emissions than gasoline.

"There have already been marked improvements in air quality in Mumbai and Delhi because of natural gas vehicles replacing diesel vehicles," noted Murray.

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While the proposed project is still in the early stages, the start-up target is this fall. Being half way around the world has created some challenges. "You go and have some meetings and you do your best by e-mail but it is tough when you are an 11 and a half hour time difference and 12,000 air kilometres away," he said.

The challenges are worth it; the project would be a coup for both SRC and the province.

"There will be Saskatchewan technology in the second most populated country in the world," said Murray. "You don't think of Saskatchewan as being an automotive hotbed but we do have some unique technologies and some unique capabilities that are applicable to India."