Chesapeake Utilities turns to a new source to generate renewable natural gas
Apartnership between Chesapeake Utilities Corporation and Bioenergy DevCo will bring renewable natural gas to customers on the Delmarva Peninsula in a unique way—via excess organics from the poultry industry.
The resources generated from organic waste at BDC’s anaerobic digestion facilities in Delaware will become utility-quality RNG once it goes through a $6 million gas processing plant that Chesapeake Utilities Corporation will build, according to the utility’s news release. The waste would otherwise be sent to a landfill to decompose and eventually release greenhouse gases or would be incinerated, leading to air pollution.
Eastern Shore Natural Gas Company and Marlin Gas Services, both subsidiaries of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation, will also make incremental investments associated with the transport and receipt of RNG for multiple suppliers, initially totaling about $7 million, the news release said.
The RNG will ultimately be delivered through Chesapeake Utilities’ distribution system to its natural gas customers.
“We are committed to operating in a manner that leads to a more sustainable environment and future, thereby ensuring a better quality of life in our communities,” Jeff Householder, president and CEO of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation, told American Gas. “As a Delmarva-based company, we want to do our part in reducing organic waste and associated runoff issues that have impacted the area for years. Investments to support RNG flowing through our pipelines also provide us the opportunity to significantly reduce our carbon footprint, diversify our natural gas portfolio, and benefit our customers and communities.”
In addition to its partnership with BDC, Chesapeake Utilities is also in negotiations on several RNG opportunities, all of which share the environmental benefit that comes from utilizing RNG derived from organic waste materials from farms, landfills and wastewater treatment plants, the utility said.
Marlin Gas Services, which Chesapeake Utilities acquired in December 2018, is positioned to be a leading transporter of RNG, serving as a virtual pipeline between biogas producers and local distribution companies or end-use customers, such as Chesapeake Utilities’ own natural gas distribution operations, the utility said.