RNG NEWS
Stay up to date with the latest stories, insights, and announcements.U.S. Gain and Entech Solutions Bring Renewable Energy to a Wisconsin Dairy Digester
U.S. Gain is excited to share its first integration of a solar microgrid at its Dallmann East River Dairy digester in Brillion, Wisconsin. This U.S. Gain-owned digester has been producing renewable natural gas for the transportation industry since August 2020.
Representing a major step forward for innovation in rural Wisconsin, this project highlights the integration of sustainability progress and energy independence into the farming and renewable natural gas communities. Using solar panels, renewable electricity is generated and used to power day-to-day digester operations. This electricity can also be stored in onsite batteries to be used at night or on cloudy days. Additionally, through onsite combined heat and power technology, heat is captured and repurposed to reduce natural gas demand.
BioTown Biogas Activates Digester & Processing Facility, Becoming One of Largest Renewable Natural Gas Producers in North America
BioTown Biogas is activating its new digester and processing facility, one of the largest on-farm biodigesters in the world. The activation is being marked by an on-site commissioning ceremony and ribbon cutting, to be attended by Indiana Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch and other elected and business leaders.
BTB sources food waste, dairy manure, beef manure, and other agriculture waste to produce renewable natural gas (RNG) and renewable electric power. The new facility, located in Reynolds, Indiana, is expected to generate more than 42 million kilowatt-hours of renewable power per year, while also producing more than three million gallons of renewable fuel per year.
Connecticut Governor Discusses Food Waste Management with Industry Leaders
According to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, last year’s trash plant closure has led to an estimated 860,000 tons of waste per year being shipped out of state. “Why would we want to be sending our valuable food scraps, paying a premium to ship it to Pennsylvania when we could divert that material right here to Berlin, Southington?” said DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes.
Dykes said Connecticut has a number of food processing plants already, such as Bright Feeds in Berlin, which converts food waste into animal feed. There’s also Quantum Biopower in Southington. “We’re taking in food waste materials, and in our case, we’re converting them into renewable natural gas and using that gas as a fuel source,” said Quantum Biopower Vice President Brian Paganini.
W&J Speakers Tout Sustainable Energy From Trash
Tom Spears isn’t the only official who doesn’t believe in wasting waste.
“You can create renewable energy from waste,” said Spears, Capitol Area gas operations manager for WM. “Our company has the largest network of active solid waste landfills in North America — 255 of them. Landfill gas collected from decomposing waste is used to power turbine engines that produce electricity.”
Spears was one of three speakers who discussed “Renewable Natural Gas: Sustainable Energy from Trash” during the most recent online seminar organized by the Center for Energy Policy and Management at Washington & Jefferson College. The event, part of CEPM’s Energy Lecture Series, was held March 8.
Virginia Natural Gas Receives Approval From Virginia State Corporation Commission for Renewable Natural Gas Pilot Program
A five-year pilot from Virginia Natural Gas aims to encourage the development of renewable natural gas production facilities within the VNG service territory. Recently approved by the Virginia State Corporation Commission, the RNG Interconnect pilot program also authorizes the company to integrate RNG into its natural gas distribution system.
The pilot is part of the energy company's Sustainable Gas Program, which will allow for the production and delivery of RNG into VNG's pipeline system and support the procurement of both RNG and Next Generation Natural Gas. This is complementary to VNG's path to reach net-zero direct greenhouse emissions from its operations by 2050.
HASI Invests in Bioenergy Devco's Growth of Anaerobic Digestion Facilities
Bioenergy Devco, the North American division of BTS Bioenergy, on March 21 announced a $30 million investment by Annapolis-based HASI, a climate solutions investor.
The financing, secured by Bioenergy Devco's Maryland Bioenergy Center – Jessup facility, which operates in Jessup, Maryland, will support the development of anaerobic digestion facilities across the U.S. to bring sustainable organic waste recycling, reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, and a sustainable energy resource to more communities in North America.
Farmer Builds First Methane Digester to Handle 10 Farms
A multi-million-dollar silo digester that can handle manure from about 10 dairy farms is nearing completion on Thurler Farms, southwest of Winchester. It’s the first in a planned fleet of 310 units nationwide to extract methane from most of the manure produced on Canada’s 10,000 dairy farms by 2030.
Ontario will see an initial pilot group of six digesters — three in Eastern Ontario, three in Western Ontario and valued at a combined $56.5 million — starting with the Thurler farm location. Construction on the other five should begin this year, according to Nick Thurler, co-owner of the farm and co-founder of the project owned by developing company, GET (Green Energy Trading) Corp. Thurler is the former vice-chair of Dairy Farmers of Ontario.
PCS Software Improves Shipment Routing And Service for Sapphire Gas Solutions
PCS Software announced that Sapphire Gas Solutions has gone live with PCS’s Shipper Transportation Management System Platform. Sapphire is an industry leader in mobile Liquefied Natural Gas, Compressed Natural Gas, and Renewable Natural Gas with turnkey services across the United States, accumulating over 60 years of experience in natural gas service and transportation.
The successful implementation of the PCS Shipper TMS to optimize shipment planning and execution allows Sapphire to improve shipment scheduling and on-time delivery performance for its LNG and CNG customers.
EU’s Net-Zero Industry Act Aims to Bring Home Clean Tech Production
The European Commission tabled its net-zero industry act on March 16, setting a goal for the EU to domestically produce at least 40% of the technology it needs to achieve its climate and energy targets by 2030.
“We need a regulatory environment that allows us to scale up the clean energy transition quickly,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The proposed law aims at speeding up permitting and increasing access to finance for clean tech. Supported technologies include solar, wind, batteries and storage, heat pumps and geothermal energy, electrolyzers and fuel cells, biogas/biomethane, carbon capture, utilization and storage, and grid technologies.
Renewable Gas Projects Eyed by Enbridge and NJ Utility PSE&G
Renewable gas projects will be part of multi-billion-dollar energy infrastructure investments this year by Canadian energy developer Enbridge Inc. and New Jersey's largest utility.
Enbridge will invest $C2.4 billion this year in natural gas and liquids infrastructure and renewable projects while New Jersey utility PSE&G seeks approval to invest $2.5 billion to overhaul its natural gas infrastructure —including demonstrations to introduce renewable natural gas and hydrogen into its system.
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