In the United States (US), Ameresco, Inc., a leading cleantech integrator specializing in energy efficiency and renewable energy, has announced that its newly formed joint venture with Republic Services, a leader in the environmental services industry, has achieved commercial operation with its landfill gas-to- renewable natural gas plant located at Republic Services’ Roxana Landfill in Edwardsville, Illinois.
The Roxana Landfill RNG facility captures landfill gas (LFG) and processes it into pipeline-quality renewable natural gas (RNG), a low-carbon transportation fuel.
This project beneficially uses previously flared LFG to create RNG that will displace fossil fuel in a nearby Energy Transfer natural gas transmission pipeline.
One of the largest of its kind in North America
One of the largest of its type facilities in North America, it is designed to process 6,000 standard cubic feet per minute (SCFM) of raw landfill gas.
It is estimated that the facility will reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by more than 82,000 tonnes per year equivalent to the annual emissions from about 5,000 average passenger vehicles, or the energy consumption of approximately 2,500 homes.
This decreases reliance on fossil fuels and advances increased environmental sustainability through the promotion of a renewable resource by extracting value from waste and transforming it into a clean energy source.
The project also supports Illinois’ commitment to increasing its renewable energy portfolio – the state has committed to achieving 40 percent renewable energy by 2030 and 100 percent clean energy by 2050.
At Republic Services, our longstanding sustainability goal is to beneficially reuse 50 percent more biogas at our locations by 2030. Through partnerships like this, we are able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and develop a renewable resource that helps meet energy demands while protecting the environment, said Tim Oudman, SVP of Sustainability Innovation at Republic Services.
The Roxana facility also marks the 14th renewable energy project that Republic Services and Ameresco have collaborated on, with another 8 projects in various stages of development, permitting, and construction.
Today’s announcement marks a momentous occasion in Ameresco’s 22-year partnership with Republic Services. This is the first time that our firms have formed a joint venture to co-invest in a new, renewable energy facility. Republic Services and Ameresco have similar visions to create a more sustainable world. This project does just that as part of the circular economy turning waste into a reliable source of renewable energy that has a tremendous impact on our environment, said Michael Bakas, President of Renewable Fuels at Ameresco.
