PG&E and BioEnergy Solutions Use Manure for Renewable Energy

San Francisco, California [RenewableEnergyAccess.com] Under a recent agreement, BioEnergy Solutions will deliver up to three billion cubic feet of renewable natural gas a year to Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) to meet the electricity needs of approximately 50,000 PG&E residential customers in central and northern California.

BioEnergy Solutions’ first project will be to use manure from 3,000 dairy cows at the Vintage Dairy of Fresno County, California. The manure will be flushed into covered lagoons that will trap the methane gas produced as the manure decomposes. The methane will be “scrubbed” to remove carbon dioxide and corrosive materials to meet PG&E’s industry environmental standards for power plants, then delivered to PG&E through the utility’s pipeline. “BioEnergy Solutions was founded by dairymen, and we understand the challenges agriculture faces in the coming years to reduce emissions,” said David Albers, president of BioEnergy Solutions and the owner of Vintage Dairy. “This agreement turns what would otherwise be a growing problem for farmers into a new revenue source for them, and helps PG&E continue its mission to deliver clean energy to its customers.” PG&E currently supplies more than 12% of its energy from renewable resources that qualify under California’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) Program; more than 50% of the electricity that PG&E delivers to its customers comes from generating resources that emit no carbon dioxide. Since starting its renewable energy program, PG&E has entered into contracts for more than 1,100 MW of renewable energy — wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and hydro resources.