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Daimler Truck Group, the commercial vehicle arm of Germany’s Daimler AG, on Monday announced a new clean commercial vehicles initiative, under which the company will manufacture more hybrid electric trucks and test the effectiveness of biofuels.

The Environmental Protection Agency issued a warning to biodiesel producers they could face fines of up to $32,500 a day if their product does not meet quality standards.

The average price of a gallon of diesel in the United States jumped 14.6 cents last week, setting a new record high of $3.303 a gallon, the Energy Department reported. Last week’s diesel price, $3.157 a gallon, matched the old record, set Oct. 24, 2005.

The fuel price spiral has resumed, sending diesel and crude oil costs to never-before-seen levels, even as the economy stumbles along and fleets grapple with declining freight levels in 10 of the past 12 months.

The Port of Long Beach said it is joining the Port of Los Angeles in setting a plan to bar older trucks from operating at the port, and approved a tariff structure that will gradually limit access to all but the cleanest vehicles.

The decision by two major engine manufacturers, Cummins Inc. and Navistar International, to build 2010 heavy-duty diesel engines without selective catalytic reduction technology has upset truck sales forecasts for the 2009 and 2010 truck markets.

Retail diesel prices continued to climb last week, with the national average jumping 6.3 cents to $3.157 a gallon, matching the record set two years ago, according to the Department of Energy.