Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett and the Department of Environmental Protection announced that the third round of Natural Gas Vehicle grants opened on Saturday.

The grants will provide an estimated $6 million to help pay for the incremental purchase and conversion costs of heavy-duty natural gas fleet vehicles."Pennsylvania continues to move in the right direction by creating opportunities to convert vehicle fleets from imported oil to homegrown, clean-burning, affordable natural gas," Corbett said. "We encourage all who are eligible for this funding to lower their operational costs and lessen our dependency on foreign oil."Since 2013, $14 million has been awarded to 44 organizations and companies making the switch to compressed natural gas, liquified natural gas and bi-fuel vehicles weighing 14,000 pounds or more.Those eligible to apply include nonprofit organizations, local transportation organizations, state-owned or state-related universities, commonwealth or municipal authorities, for-profit companies, and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.Requests can be no more than 50 percent of the incremental purchase or retrofit cost per vehicle, with a maximum total of $25,000 per vehicle.Grant applications are due by 4 p.m. Nov. 14 and will be awarded this winter.Eligible applicants are encouraged to participate in a related webinar from 2-3 p.m. on Sept. 22.To register for the webinar and view the updated guidance document and online grant application, visit

www.dep.state.pa.us and click on the "Natural Gas Vehicle Grant Program" button.