RNG NEWS
Vanguard Renewables Breaks Ground on Gas Facility
Vanguard Renewables, a portfolio company of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a part of BlackRock, held a groundbreaking ceremony for its newest renewable natural gas project at The Moyer Family’s Oakmulgee Dairy Farm in Amelia Court House, Virginia. The farm, owned by Larkin Moyer, a fourth-generation dairyman, along with his sons Brandon and Jeremy and is the oldest continuously operating family dairy in the Commonwealth.
Vanguard Renewables is a leading builder, owner and operator of organics-to-renewable natural gas facilities in the U.S.. The company is expanding across the U.S. and currently has seven operational facilities, three under construction, and plans to begin construction on multiple additional sites by the end of the year. The Farm Powered anaerobic digester at Oakmulgee Dairy Farm, will produce more than 259K MMBtu/year of renewable gas and divert over 105K tons of food and beverage waste from landfill or incineration yearly.
Naturgy Teams With Hispania Silva To Build at Least 20 Biomethane Plants
In Spain, Naturgy has signed a strategic alliance with Hispania Silva, a company specialising in waste recovery with extensive experience in the agricultural sector, for the construction of a minimum of 20 biomethane production plants, which could reach up to 30. The plants that form part of this alliance, which will be distributed throughout Spain and will be operational before 2030, will have the capacity to generate 2.5 TWh of biomethane per year, equivalent to the consumption of 500,000 homes. In addition, they will contribute to the decarbonization of our economy, with the reduction of 450,000 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to the planting of 49 million pine trees.
Nicor Gas Marks First RNG Interconnection in Illinois
Nicor Gas, one of four natural gas distribution companies of Southern Company Gas, opened its first-ever renewable natural gas (RNG) interconnection with Air Liquide’s largest RNG facility globally to convert biogas from a nearby landfill into energy.
“This interconnection is a significant step forward for Nicor Gas and Southern Company Gas on the path to a sustainable energy future for Illinois and facilitating economy-wide carbon reductions while fueling resiliency, energy security, and the growth of the clean energy economy,” said Wendell Dallas, president and CEO of Nicor Gas, during an official ribbon cutting ceremony for the event that was attended by company leaders, local and national elected officials, and community partners.
Valtom and Waga Energy Complete First RNG Injection Using a Hybrid Biogas Source
VALTOM and Waga Energy commissioned a renewable natural gas (RNG) production unit in Clermont-Ferrand (Central France), supplied both by biogas from the Puy-Long Landfill and the anaerobic digestion plant at the Vernéa waste management facility. It is the first unit of its kind in Europe.
On December 18th, 2024, in Clermont-Ferrand, VALTOM, a public authority in charge of waste management for the Clermont-Ferrand region in central France, and Waga Energy, a global expert in the production of Renewable Natural Gas from landfills, commissioned the first RNG production unit to be supplied by a hybrid biogas source.
Treasury Finalizes Guidance for IRA’s Tech Neutral, Clean Electricity Tax Credits
The U.S. Treasury on Tuesday finalized its guidance for the technology-neutral 45Y and 48E clean electricity tax credits introduced in the Inflation Reduction Act, a week after the credits went into effect and replaced their predecessors — the Section 45 production tax credit and the Section 48 investment tax credit.
“The final rules issued today provide important clarity and certainty around what clean electricity zero-emissions technologies qualify for the credits — including wind, solar, hydropower, marine and hydrokinetic, geothermal, nuclear, and certain waste energy recovery property,” Treasury said in a release.
US Hydrogen Guidance Makes Big Difference for Some Projects
The US Treasury Department has finalized long-awaited guidance that maintains tight guardrails for accessing lucrative clean hydrogen production tax credits, with some new flexibilities that lower the bar just enough to possibly secure and strengthen the commercial viability of certain projects.
Finalized guidance released last week for the "45V" tax credits of up to $3 per kilogram sets out eligibility and verification requirements requiring projects to prove that the energy they use to generate hydrogen is not only low carbon, but new, identifiable and local.
Opal Fuels Secures Six-Year RNG Supply Deal To Support Fueling Stations in Us
Natural gas distribution company OPAL Fuels has secured an RNG supply agreement to construct five new fueling stations in the US over a six-year period.
The deal extends a decade-long collaboration with a logistics solutions provider to bolster the existing network of fueling stations nationwide.
Hydrogen Industry Weighs Next Steps on 45V
The Biden administration's focus on natural gas and nuclear power in final rules for the hydrogen tax credit could blunt industry opposition as the incoming Trump administration targets IRA credits.
Why it matters: The guidance may be just good enough for hydrogen developers to accept it rather than risk a Trump rewrite and further uncertainty and delays.
RNG Tax Credit Impacts Spill Into New Year; Plus News From Waga, Clean Energy Fuels
The biogas industry kept busy to close out the end of 2024. The U.S. Treasury released final credit guidance for Section 48 Investment Tax Credits, which provided a tax discount for projects that refined biogas into renewable natural gas and began construction last year.
If past is prologue, new tax credit language could continue to prove enticing for project developers in the coming year. Congress is slated to pass a major tax package for the first time since 2017, and experts say the RNG industry may advocate to extend or make certain credits like Section 48 permanent, locking in a more favorable business environment for new projects.
California Bioenergy Reaches Significant Development Milestone in the Golden State
California Bioenergy LLC (“CalBio”) announces the successful completion of its 78th dairy digester project in the state of California, marking a significant milestone in the company’s mission to promote sustainable energy solutions and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
By year’s end, with the addition of 8 dairy digester projects in South Dakota, CalBio will have a total of 86 operating digesters built in partnership with 94 dairy farm families. With the commissioning of its newest dairy biomethane cluster in Hilmar, CalBio now operates 7 clusters located across California’s San Joaquin Valley. Clusters are groups of digesters that share a centralized gas clean-up facility, where the captured dairy biogas is upgraded and then injected into a natural gas pipeline. In addition to clusters, CalBio is advancing the development of virtual pipeline projects and digester projects that produce clean electricity for dairies separated geographically from other farms.