RNG NEWS
Stay up to date with the latest stories, insights, and announcements.Clean Energy Opens Renewable Natural Gas Fueling Station in Carson to Provide Ultra-Clean, Low-Carbon Fuel Option for Heavy-Duty Truck Fleets
Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) announced the opening of a new public fueling station in Carson, CA that will provide renewable natural gas (RNG) to fuel trucks in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and service many Carson-area truck terminals and warehouses.
“This RNG station will allow more vehicles to take advantage of the cleanest fuel available today, especially in a region heavily impacted by emissions from heavy-duty trucks,” said Greg Roche, vice president of sustainability, Clean Energy. “We are pleased to bring more fueling choices to companies that want to reduce their carbon footprint with RNG and greatly reduce harmful greenhouse gases.”
“Many members of the Harbor Trucking Association have invested in RNG trucks to meet rigorous sustainability goals,” said Weston LaBar, CEO of the Harbor Trucking Association. “We applaud Clean Energy for investing in the fueling infrastructure so that drivers of RNG trucks can quickly and conveniently fuel with the cleanest commercially available fuel.”
Clean Energy and bp Create JV to Invest in RNG Fuel Production
Clean Energy Fuels Corp (NASDAQ: CLNE) today announced that it has finalized a joint venture (JV) with BP Products North America Inc, a subsidiary of BP p.l.c. (NYSE: BP) to develop, own and operate new renewable natural gas (RNG) projects at dairies and other agriculture facilities.
Each company will retain 50% voting control in the JV, which will be initially funded with $50 million previously provided by bp and another $30 million from Clean Energy. The JV anticipates adding preferred stock and debt to increase committed investment capital. Clean Energy will be the operating partner.
The JV will produce RNG using methane captured from dairies’ waste. RNG is used as a transportation fuel and has lower GHG emissions on a lifecycle basis when compared to conventional gasoline and diesel. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has given similar projects a carbon intensity (CI) score of a weighted average of -317 compared to CI scores of 100 for conventional diesel fuel and 16 for electric batteries.
Natural Gas and America's Clean Energy Transition
President Biden has set the ambitious, important climate goal of achieving net zero emissions from the nation’s electric power sector by 2035. Already, natural gas has played a key role in lowering U.S. carbon dioxide emissions in the past 15 years, in part by displacing higher emitting coal. But gas, which still provides more than a third of America’s electricity, must play an even greater part in America’s decarbonization plans going forward.
Right now, gas uniquely supports the expansion of renewable energy by providing an instantly dispatchable source of electricity. Unlike coal and nuclear plants, natural gas power plants turn on and off within minutes, allowing the grid to quickly match supply and demand even when the wind isn’t blowing and the sun isn’t shining. As a U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory report has noted, this unique flexibility of natural gas generation thereby facilitates the steady expansion of renewables.
City Committee Will Consider Authorizing the Use of Renewable Natural Gas in City’s Fueling Program
The Pasadena City Council’s Municipal Services Committee will likely formally endorse a recommendation by the Department of Public Works to start using renewable natural gas (RNG) in the city’s fleet fueling program in an effort to eventually transition from using fossil compressed natural gas (CNG).
Transitioning to RNG will enable the city to comply with Assembly Bill 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, and to qualify to participate in the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) Program.
Enbridge Gas Partners with City of Hamilton to Fuel Ontario's First Carbon-Negative Bus
The City of Hamilton and Enbridge Gas publicly announce the first renewable natural gas (RNG) fuelled bus in Ontario. Hamilton Street Railway (HSR) is now the first public transportation authority in Ontario to use RNG, to transport customers. In one year, the HSR RNG bus will use and divert 450 tonnes of organic waste from the landfill. That's equivalent to 138 garbage trucks, while also displacing CO2 emissions from 36,000 litres of diesel consumed in a year.
"Renewable natural gas provides an excellent opportunity for the HSR and City of Hamilton to continue our efforts to lower corporate GHG emissions and move toward targets outlined in our Climate Change Emergency declaration and Corporate Energy and Sustainability Policy. We are proud to partner with Enbridge Gas on this innovative initiative that will pave the way to ensure the future of transit in our community is energy efficient and sustainable," says Mayor Fred Eisenberger City of Hamilton.
Clean Energy and Total Sign Joint Venture to Develop Carbon-Negative Fuel and Infrastructure
Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (Nasdaq: CLNE) and its largest shareholder, Total SE, today announced a 50/50 joint venture to develop carbon-negative renewable natural gas (RNG) production facilities in the United States, as well as credit support to build additional downstream RNG fueling infrastructure. The initial firm commitment is $100 million and can increase to $400 million as development opportunities progress. Since Clean Energy and Total will be providing the equity portion of the investments, the actual amount of capital invested in RNG projects may be higher than $400 million depending on the amount of leverage that is deployed. In addition, Total will be providing credit support for Clean Energy development in the RNG value chain, including $45 million for contracted RNG fueling infrastructure.
Carbon-negative RNG is produced when carbon emissions are captured from dairies and turned into a transportation fuel, reduce the harmful effects on long-term climate change. As a result, the California Air Resources Board gives these carbon-negative RNG projects a weighted average carbon intensity (“CI”) Score (gCO2e/MJ) of -317 compared to 100 for diesel and 19 for electric batteries. Clean Energy is the largest provider of RNG as a transportation fuel in the United States, and the largest RNG fuel provider under the California LCFS program. RNG can be used directly as a vehicle fuel or can be used as a feedstock to produce “green” hydrogen or “green” electricity and still generate LCFS environmental credits.
Group Reports Milestone in Tracking the Benefits of Renewable Gas Investments
A company whose platform helps track renewable electricity transactions says it’s achieved an important milestone in developing a similar market for renewable natural gas and hydrogen.
Midwest Renewable Energy Tracking System, or M-RETS, announced its first transaction last month using a new “renewable thermal certificate” standard it created for thermal energy.
The Minneapolis company has been developing the system for several years after identifying a need for better verification and transparency around renewable natural gas transactions.
500 Million Gallons of RNG Produced for US Transport in 2020
More than 503 million gallons of renewable natural gas (RNG) were produced in the US for transportation in 2020, according to new figures.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the data, showing a marked increase in RNG production for transport – up from 404 million gallons in 2019.
This increase can be tied to state and federal policies, such as the Renewable Fuel Standard and the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard that encourage the use of alternative sources of clean energy in transport.
Minnesota on its Way to Distributing State-Made RNG
Minnesota is one of the top organic farm waste generators in the U.S., ranking first in turkey production, second in hog production, and sixth in both red meat and dairy production, and it’s looking hard at ways to both divert and capitalize on that waste. The northern Midwest state is reviewing proposed legislation to advance renewable natural gas (RNG) distribution and has approved the first RNG interconnection tariff in that state, enabling its largest natural gas utility to offer interstate connections to suppliers of Minnesota-made clean fuel.
CenterPoint Energy (CPE), serving more than 870,000 customers in Minnesota, says the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s green light on the interconnection tariff is the first step toward encouraging development of local RNG. The company expects most suppliers will provide fuel for the transportation market beyond Minnesota and eventually hopes to purchase fuel for its own customers to use in homes and businesses. The RNG will be sourced from food waste, wastewater, and/or agricultural waste.
Green Source Advantage Offers More Renewable Energy Options for South Carolina Customers
The Public Service Commission of South Carolina (PSCSC) has approved Duke Energy’s Green Source Advantage program in South Carolina, enabling the company to expand renewable energy options for customers. View the PSCSC order here.
The Green Source Advantage program builds on similar programs that Duke Energy has offered to large customers since 2014. The program offers large customers the flexibility of selecting and negotiating all price terms directly with a renewable supplier of their choice as well as retaining renewable energy certificates (RECs) generated by the renewable facility. The customer and renewable energy supplier can also agree on the contract length that is right for them.
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