Top Stories

This month, the CBA remained highly engaged with NRCan’s biofuel consultation as it drew to a close, and began follow-up engagement to build broader awareness across government of the immediacy of industry needs. On August 23rd, the CBA sent dedicated letters to Minister Wilkinson and Minister Freeland highlighting the urgent need to support biogas & RNG in Canada through an Investment Tax Credit (ITC) equivalent to what is available to clean hydrogen. In the last week of August, CBA also had meetings with Senior Policy Advisors in the Prime Minister’s Office and NRCan Minister’s Office to discuss the critical state of play for Canadian biogas & RNG development following the Inflation Reduction Act, and solutions such as urgent expansion of the ITCs for clean hydrogen and clean technology. The CBA will continue meeting with officials and raising this issue at the political level over the coming weeks to ensure that biogas & RNG can reach its full potential and play a role in Canada’s clean transition. The CBA will continue to update members on ongoing advocacy for ITC inclusion as federal budget priorities are developed.

The Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas (RNG Coalition) has announced that North America now has 300 operational renewable natural gas (RNG) facilities, up from just over 30 facilities in 2011, when RNG Coalition was founded. The organisation said this is a landmark achievement, and that the growth reflects the RNG industry’s commitment to mitigating climate change, fostering energy security, and ensuring a cleaner, greener future for present and future generations.

CBA Member, Waga Energy, a global expert in the production of Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) from landfills, signed a commercial agreement with the Waste Commission of Scott County, an inter-governmental solid waste management agency, and Linwood Mining and Minerals Corporation, a leader in the limestone industry in the Midwest, to produce RNG at the Scott Area landfill in Davenport, Iowa. As part of this agreement, Waga Energy will fund construction of an RNG facility, using its patented WAGABOX® technology, to upgrade landfill gas into pipeline-quality RNG. Waga Energy will operate the plant for a 20 year initial term, sharing revenue with the Commission and Linwood.

Renewable Natural Gas – also known as RNG or biomethane — has gained attention in recent years as a lower-carbon replacement for conventional fossil natural gas. Rising demand for RNG has helped push prices for the associated environmental attributes up to anywhere from five to forty times the price of physical natural gas. As the market has grown, so has the need for transparent pricing. In response, S&P Global Commodity Insights launched first-of-kind pricing for landfill gas RNG for the California and outside-of-California markets in May. What supports those premiums for RNG and how does S&P Global see demand for this low-carbon gas alternative developing in the future? Kelsey Hallahan, team lead for low carbon commodities, discusses with low carbon pricing analyst Hope Raymond, senior biofuels analyst Jamie Dorner, and senior director for the S&P Global Hydrogen and Renewable Gas Forum Alex Klaessig.

In Budget 2023, the Government of Canada committed to engaging with industry to explore opportunities to promote the growth of Canada’s biofuels sector. The CBA submitted comments to a questionnaire issued by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) to hear perspectives on barriers to scaling up domestic biofuels production and mechanisms that could support the sector in meeting the growing demand for low-emissions fuels. CBA’s submission highlighted the important of an investment tax credit (ITC) for biogas & RNG equivalent to other low-carbon gaseous fuels, such as hydrogen, and policies to build domestic demand, such as the proposed Clean Gas Standard.

EverGen Infrastructure Corp. is pleased to announce first injection of renewable natural gas (RNG) at its GrowTEC facility in late-June, following utility grid connection upon completion of gas quality sampling, and has been producing daily volumes of up to 180 GJ/day. The completion of Phase 1 of the GrowTEC RNG expansion project delivers production capacity of 80,000 GJ of RNG annually.