RNG 101

What is renewable natural gas (RNG)?

Biogas is a product of decomposing organic material. Biogas can come from many sources including agricultural waste, food waste, landfills and wastewater treatment plants. Biogas can be burned for electricity or converted into a transportation fuel. 

If used for a transportation fuel, biogas must go through a cleaning process to remove impurities. The end product of which is 98% methane... Renewable Natural Gas (RNG).

How it works (Dairy)

Cow manure enters the Anaerobic Digester and breaks down for 2-4 weeks producing biogas. This raw biogas is cleaned by the Gas Upgrading Skid or "GUS". RNG comes out the other side and is sent down our pipeline where it is compressed at the utility receipt point.

Why does RNG matter?

Unlike other transportation fuels, Lifecycle Analysis gives RNG credit for reducing GHG emissions in two ways:

Cleaner burning. RNG is identical to fossil natural gas. Just like CNG, RNG when used in transportation is cleaner burning than diesel.  

Methane capture. Methane is a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than CO2. The process of turning wastes that would otherwise be flared or left to naturally decompose into transportation fuel, greatly reduces the amount of harmful methane that is released into the atmosphere. 

For these reasons, RNG is recognized by the California Air Resources Board and the US Environmental Protection Agency as the cleanest transportation fuel pathway on the market... even cleaner than electric!

Monetizing environmental attributes of RNG

State and Federal programs exist in the US to incentivize cleaner transportation fuels. RNG when used as a transportation fuel is eligible to receive credits from the following programs: 

Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Administered by the EPA through the Clean Air Act, the RFS mandates that blenders and refiners of petroleum-based fuels procure alternative fuels through its annual Renewable Volume Obligation. Alternative fuel providers receive a Renewable Identification Numbers (RIN) for each gallon of fuel used in transportation. These RINs are then sold to Obligated Parties. RNG qualifies as a cellulosic biofuel and receives a D3 RIN for ethanol gallon equivalent of fuel used in transportation.

Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). In addition to qualifying for RINs, RNG qualifies for LCFS credits in California and Oregon. The LCFS program uses lifecycle analysis to determine the environmental impact for every fuel pathway issuing a Carbon Intensity (CI) score. Carbon Intensity is measured in grams of CO2 equivalents per megajoule. As part of their Clean Air Plan, California Air Resources Board has mandated an increasingly lower state-wide CI score each year until 2025. For each ton of CO2 equivalents avoided, LCFS creditors, like RNG providers, receive credits. These credits are then sold to deficit-producing entities. Because of the dual pathway to greenhouse gas reduction outlined above, RNG is recognized by ARB as the cleanest fuel pathway in the LCFS program.   

More Information on Environmental Credits

Click here to download California Air Resource Board's LCFS credit calculator.

For a list of Current fuel pathways, click here. 

Questions about LCFS credits or RINs? Want up-to-date LCFS and RIN pricing? Contact us.

CNG 101

What is compressed natural gas (CNG)?

Compressed natural gas (CNG) is natural gas (methane), pressurized up to 3,600 psi. CNG has many benefits that have made it an increasingly attractive alternative to diesel fuel. CNG is: 

• Cheaper

• Cleaner

• American

Cheaper

Natural gas is available at low-prices in the United States. Many States have legislated a tax-advantage for CNG. Low commodity prices and low fuel taxes lead to a significant dollar-per-mile cost-savings for CNG versus diesel.

Cleaner

Natural gas is a low-carbon fuel, meaning its combustion in engines naturally leads to less emissions than diesel. Most notably less green-house gases (GHG) and less nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions.

GREENHOUSE GASes (GHG)

CNG's well-to-wheel GHG emissions are 17% lower than diesel. RNG offers an ever greater reduction in GHG emissions, for more information see RNG 101.

Nitrous Oxides (NOx)

• 110 million Americans reside in areas with exceedingly poor air quality.

• NOx is a primary cause of smog and air pollution.

• EPA has causally linked NOx exposure with respiratory effects including asthma in children.

• Heavy-duty diesel trucks cause 26% of NOX emission nationwide

Using new Ultra Low-NOx CNG engines, CNG trucks emit over 20x less NOx than today’s diesel trucks. CNG trucks running with these engines qualify for “near-zero emissions” and many different grants and incentive programs. CNG trucks can be cleaner than electric vehicles when including upstream NOx emissions. 

Cost-Effective Emissions Reduction. Natural gas vehicles deliver the most cost-effective NOx emissions reduction of all available technologies. This makes NGVs eligible for a multitude of State and Federal grants, see Incentive Funding for more information or contact an Amp Americas representative. 

American

Almost all (97%) of natural gas consumed in the US is from US sources, when you include Canada and Mexico, that number increases to 99.7%. The EIA projects a 85+ year supply of natural gas in the United States. Utilizing CNG as a transportation fuel allows Americans to decrease our dependence on foreign oil and bolsters our domestic economy. 

Other Benefits

Very safe. Natural gas is lighter than air and does not leak into groundwater. Natural gas has a limited combustion ratio and high ignition temperature. These properties make natural gas a safe alternative to diesel. 

Distribution Infrastructure. Natural gas can be transported across the United States using the country's existing pipeline network, minimizing the cost of distribution.

Quieter. Natural gas vehicles (NGVs) have 80-90% lower decibel ratings than a comparable diesel. 

Proven Reliable. With over 23 million NGVs world-wide and model types available in virtually every application, NGVs have proven to be a reliable alternative to diesel trucks in transportation.

Nationwide Station Network. With over 1,500 natural gas fueling stations nation-wide, NGV owners do not have to worry about where and whether they will be able to fill up. 

For more information see our CNG 101 Booklet.

Industry Research

Helpful Links

RNG Economics

• Amp Americas, "Economic Analysis- Benefits of AFTC 5-Year Extension"

• Amp Americas, "The per-mile Costs of Operating Compressed Natural Gas Trucks

• GNA, "Game Changer"

• ICF/RNG Coalition, "Economic Impacts of RNG in Low NOX Engines"

EMissions

• American Lung Association: State of the Air 2018

• E&E News: "Cars threaten climate goals in blue states"

• Sustainable Brands (Letter from CNGVC President Thomas Lawson), "How Corporate Fleets Can Go Carbon-Negative Now"

• The Hill (Letter from NGVA President Daniel J. Gage), "If we want cleaner air, we need cleaner trucks"

• Guardian, "Vehicles are now America's biggest CO2 source but EPA is tearing up regulations"

• University of California - Riverside, College of Engineering, "Final Report: Ultra-Low NOx Natural Gas Vehicle Evaluation"

• Thiruvengadam et. al, "Emission rates of regulated pollutants from current technology heavy-duty diesel and natural gas goods movement vehicles."

• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), "Health Risk and Exposure Assessment of Ozone: Executive Summary"

• Health Effects Institute, "Traffic- Related Air Pollution: A Critical Review of the Literature on Emissions, Exposure, and Health Effects"

RNG vs. electric

• AR2, "The Human & Environmental Cost of 'Clean Energy'"

• Greenpeace, "The Tesla Dream"

Dairy biogas in the News

• Bloomberg, "Add Cow Manure to Your List of Renewable Energy Sources"

Other useful industry links

AAA

• Diesel Retail Fuel Prices

Agonne National Laboratory 

• JOBS Model for estimating the economic impact of CNG station development

• AFLEET Model for estimating environmental impact of CNG truck conversion

• GREET Model for emissions factors of different fuel types

California Air Resources Board (ARB) 

• EMFAC Emission Factors

• GREET Model for CI scores

• LCFS Credit Calculator

Chicago Mercantile Exchange

• Natural Gas: Henry Hub Futures

• Diesel: ULSD Futures

NGVAmerica

• Home page, useful resource for all things CNG

• VW Action Center

• Natural Gas Is Now Video

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

• VIUS data on Distribution of Trucks over 26,000 lb by Vehicle Miles Traveled

Progressive Dairyman

• US Dairy Statistics

United Stated Department of Energy: Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC)

• Station count

• Truck count Regulated Fleets

• Fuel Efficiency

• State Incentives

United States Department of Transportation: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)

• Truck Registrations

United States Energy Information Administration (EIA)

• Short Term Energy Outlook

• Annual Energy Outlook

• NYMEX Futures Settlement Prices

• Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update

• Natural Gas

United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator

• Volkswagen Settlement Information

Federal and State Regulation

California Air Resources Board (ARB) 

• LCFS Program Overview

• Fuel Pathways

Oregon Clean Fuels Program

United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• RFS Program Overview

• RVO 2018-19

Disclaimer: Amp Americas does not guarantee or endorse the information or products available on third-party sites.