In November 2023, Enbridge announced the purchase of seven operating U.S. landfill gas-to-renewable natural gas facilities from RNG developer Morrow Renewables. It’s a move company officials say positions the Calgary, Alberta-based energy company as a North American midstream RNG leader.
Reported to be worth $1.2 billion, the acquisition of the Morrow Renewables facilities, now called TomorrowRNG, adds approximately 76 full-time employees to Enbridge’s plant and field operations.
According to Kurt Knight-Turcan, Enbridge’s president of TomorrowRNG, the facilities—located in Texas and Arkansas—were considered attractive additions because of their ability to provide stable and consistent returns and for their long-term growth potential. He says all are located in regions of growing demographics that support ongoing landfill growth and have strong partnerships with local municipalities.
Enbridge reports the facilities currently produce, in aggregate, almost 5 billion cubic feet of RNG per year.
Landfill RNG facilities collect gas produced by waste decomposition in landfills and then break and compress the gas to pipeline specifications. After it’s upgraded into pipeline-grade methane, RNG can be blended into existing natural gas distribution networks.
“RNG is a low-carbon form of energy that will play an important role in the energy transition, and we’re excited to be a part of that,” Knight-Turcan told American Gas. “As a North American midstream leader in RNG, Enbridge is well positioned to develop and deliver pipeline-quality RNG from landfills to our customers as they look to us to help decarbonize their energy mix.”
This is the latest addition to an inventory of RNG projects Enbridge has been building since 2011, including owning a 10% stake in Divert Inc., a leading food waste management company that collects food waste from grocery stores and converts it into RNG. As part of the partnership with Divert, Enbridge has a $1 billion development agreement for RNG facilities across North America. The first project in the partnership broke ground in Longview, Washington, in September 2023 and is anticipated to be fully operational by the end of 2024.
Enbridge is also actively involved in nine RNG projects in Canada, with more than 50 other projects in various stages of development.
“In the last 20 years, we’ve invested $8 billion in renewable energy projects in North America and Europe, and we see the potential for another $5 billion in this area through 2030,” Knight-Turcan said. “We’re taking a practical approach by providing the energy needed today while investing in solutions for tomorrow, like RNG, hydrogen, and carbon capture transportation and storage.”