U.S. and Canadian Class 8 natural gas truck retail sales for the first eight months of 2020 dropped 15% year to date compared with 2019, according to ACT Research’s Alternative Fuels Quarterly report.

ACT Research also revealed the creation of an online total cost of ownership and operational calculator, which now includes the societal costs in metric tons of carbon dioxide per year.

The ACT Alternative Fuels Quarterly (AFQ) provides insight, analysis and trends about alternative fuel/power adoption for the U.S. heavy and medium duty commercial vehicle markets. The AFQ details such adoption considerations as fuel prices, fuel/charging infrastructure development, equipment prices/products/technological developments and regulatory changes. The report also includes NG truck sales data and a forecast for new natural gas adoption.

“Sales of natural gas-powered vehicles as reported by the six major truck OEMs, who account for approximately 60% of the heavy-duty natural gas market, were mixed in the June to August time period, with all three months enjoying sequential gains,” Steve Tam, vice president at ACT Research, said. “As a result, sales continue to whittle away at the year-to-date deficit.

“Looking at the most recent month [August], sales rose 26% month over month, handily besting the year-ago period. Hampered by soft sales from February through June, though, the market has been playing catch-up most of the year.”