North Carolina RNG Facilities Enter Operation
Evensol LLC (Evensol), a renewable energy project developer focusing on biogas and methane mitigation, announced that it has developed two renewable natural gas (RNG) facilities in North Carolina that are now operational. The Foothills Renewables Project in Caldwell County, North Carolina, and the Upper Piedmont Renewables Project in Person County, North Carolina, convert landfill gas from Republic Services’ landfills into RNG. Evensol, based in Sisters, Oregon, and its partners invested in excess of US$110 million in the combined projects. Charlotte, North Carolina-based Duke Energy is an equity investor in the two projects. Funding also included nearly US$73 million in loans guaranteed by the US Department of Agriculture and arranged by Greater Commercial Lending.
“Evensol is thrilled to bring these projects online, providing a beneficial use for large volumes of landfill gas, while creating a valuable renewable energy source for the residents of North Carolina. We are grateful to all our project stakeholders, investors, and lenders for their patience and support in bringing these historic facilities on-line, the first landfill gas-to-RNG facilities in North Carolina,” said David Wentworth, president and chief executive officer of Evensol.
Both projects include the development, design, permitting, construction, commissioning, and operations of a state-of-the-art RNG facility. Energyneering Solutions LLC (ESI) designed, constructed, and will operate the facilities. Primary project components include equipment from Air Liquide, Guild Associates, Perennial Energy, and Vilter Manufacturing. “ESI enjoyed leveraging its many years of experience dedicated exclusively to the biogas industry to design and build these facilities. The real win for ESI and all the stakeholders involved is that ESI will also operate the facilities, relying on the intimate knowledge we have developed through their design and construction,” said Benny Benson, president of ESI.
The RNG from the facilities will provide clean transportation fuel to commercial fleet vehicles. Each project will initially produce up to 500,000 dekatherms of RNG each year. The combined 1 million dekatherms are equivalent to the average annual natural gas use of nearly 17,000 residential customers in North Carolina. “We’re excited for the Foothills and Upper Piedmont projects to join our growing portfolio of RNG investments,” said Sasha Weintraub, Duke Energy senior vice president and president of Duke Energy’s natural gas business unit. “Duke Energy is committed to supporting sustainable energy solutions, and we’re proud to be in the RNG space as we continue our journey toward a cleaner-energy future.”
The RNG projects directly support Republic Services’ long-term sustainability goal to beneficially reuse 50% more biogas by 2030. “At Republic Services, our vision is to partner with customers to create a more sustainable world now and for future generations,” said Republic Services Area President Shane Walker. “Through our partnership, these projects will allow us to convert landfill gas into a low-carbon fuel source that reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Projects like these are not only helping Republic Services meet our sustainability goals, but our customers’ as well.”
