Aemetis, a company specializing in renewable natural gas (RNG) and renewable fuels with a focus on low and negative carbon intensity products, has announced that its subsidiary, Aemetis Biogas, has achieved a significant milestone by completing the construction and operation of dairy digesters capable of producing over 300,000 MMBtu of RNG annually.
Furthermore, planned construction of additional digesters is anticipated to raise the annual RNG production rate to over 800,000 MMBtu by the third quarter of 2025, marking a more than 150% increase from the current production level.
Eric McAfee, chairman and CEO of Aemetis, Inc., remarked: “We commenced commercial revenue generation from RNG sales for transportation in January 2023, and have already scaled up to produce over 300,000 MMBtu annually, generating approximately $13 million in revenue per year in current markets. This is prior to obtaining LCFS Provisional pathway approvals, expected increases in revenue from expanded LCFS credit mandates in November this year, and the initiation of transferable 45Z tax credits starting January 2025.”
McAfee added, “We have secured $50 million in 20-year USDA guaranteed funding for the biogas project and achieved positive cash flow from biogas operations. We are also pursuing an additional $75 million in USDA-guaranteed construction funding this year.”
The California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) credits earned by Aemetis Biogas currently reflect a carbon intensity (CI) reduction of negative 150 under the Default pathway.
It is projected that the CI will decrease to below negative 320 once CARB approves Provisional pathways for each digester.
Revenue generated from LCFS credits at the improved CI of the Provisional pathway is expected to be approximately 85% higher than revenues from the default pathway.
Aemetis has designed its RNG production infrastructure to facilitate cost-effective expansion.
Biogas from dairy digesters is transported via an Aemetis-owned pipeline to a centralized RNG upgrading facility at the Aemetis Keyes ethanol plant.
To date, Aemetis has installed 36 miles of biogas pipeline, with an additional 24 miles approved under the CEQA environmental process, resulting in a total of 60 miles of biogas gathering pipeline.
