Two renewable natural gas facilities now operating in Upper Piedmont, Foothills landfills

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EVENSOL LLC, a renewable energy project developer, has announced the operationalization of two renewable natural gas (RNG) facilities in North Carolina. The Foothills Renewables Project and the Upper Piedmont Renewables Project convert landfill gas into RNG, making a positive environmental impact. The combined investment in the projects exceeds $110 million, with Duke Energy as an equity investor and funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

SISTERS, Ore., Nov. 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- EVENSOL LLC, a renewable energy project developer focusing on biogas and methane mitigation, announces that it has developed two renewable natural gas ("RNG") facilities in North Carolina that are now operational. The Foothills Renewables Project in Caldwell County, NC, and the Upper Piedmont Renewables Project in Person County, NC, convert landfill gas from Republic Services' landfills into RNG. They make a meaningful positive environmental impact, taking a natural byproduct of waste and converting it into renewable fuel.

EVENSOL, based in Sisters, OR, and its partners invested in excess of $110 million in the combined projects. Charlotte, NC-based Duke Energy is an equity investor in the two projects. Funding also included nearly $73 million in loans guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and arranged by Greater Commercial Lending ("GCL").

"EVENSOL is thrilled to bring these projects online, providing a beneficial use for large volumes of landfill gas, while creating a valuable renewable energy source for the residents of North Carolina. We are grateful to all our project stakeholders, investors and lenders for their patience and support in bringing these historic facilities on-line, the first landfill gas to RNG facilities in North Carolina," said David Wentworth, President and CEO of EVENSOL.

Both projects include the development, design, permitting, construction, commissioning and operations of a state-of-the-art RNG facility. Energyneering Solutions, LLC ("ESI") designed, constructed and will operate the facilities. Primary project components include equipment from Air Liquide, Guild Associates, Perennial Energy, and Vilter Manufacturing.

"ESI enjoyed leveraging its many years of experience dedicated exclusively to the biogas industry to design and build these facilities. The real win for ESI and all the stakeholders involved is that ESI will also operate the facilities, relying on the intimate knowledge we have developed through their design and construction," said Benny Benson, President of ESI.

The RNG from the facilities will provide clean transportation fuel to commercial fleet vehicles. Each project will initially produce up to 500,000 dekatherms of RNG each year. The combined 1 million Dth is equivalent to the average annual natural gas use of nearly 17,000 residential customers in North Carolina.

"We're excited for the Foothills and Upper Piedmont projects to join our growing portfolio of renewable natural gas investments," said Sasha Weintraub, Duke Energy senior vice president and president of Duke Energy's natural gas business unit. "Duke Energy is committed to supporting sustainable energy solutions, and we're proud to be an industry leader in the RNG space as we continue our journey toward a cleaner energy future."

As a leader in the environmental services industry, Republic Services is committed to decarbonizing operations and providing low-carbon solutions to customers. These landfill RNG projects directly support Republic's long-term sustainability goal to beneficially reuse 50% more biogas by 2030.

"At Republic Services, our vision is to partner with customers to create a more sustainable world now and for future generations," said Republic Services Area President Shane Walker. "Through our partnership, these projects will allow us to convert landfill gas into a low-carbon fuel source that reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Projects like these are not only helping Republic Services meet our sustainability goals, but our customers' as well."

About EVENSOL LLC
EVENSOL LLC was established in 2013 to create value for its partners, investors, and project counterparties through the selective acquisition and development of renewable fuels-based energy assets, with particular focus on the biomass, biogas and biofuels sectors throughout the US and abroad.

EVENSOL pursues the development and acquisition of renewable energy assets requiring special attention to technical detail, flexibility in commercial and financial contract structure, process challenges, environmental limitations, and other factors constraining investors or developers not fully integrated in the design and operations of such facilities. The EVENSOL value proposition is to selectively identify biogas assets, acquire and/or develop such projects, and aggregate them into regional operating portfolios with fully integrated internal management controls.

About Energyneering Solutions LLC
Energyneering Solutions, LLC ("ESI") Inc, based in Sisters, OR, has been in the business since 2007 and specializes in the design, construction, and operations of biogas utilization projects that collectively produce over 1 million MWh of renewable electricity and over 50 million gallons of renewable vehicle fuel every year.

ESI's engineering team has been integral in the engineering design of over 75 diverse biogas projects including renewable natural gas facilities, biogas-to-energy facilities, landfill gas collection and control projects, anaerobic digester projects, heat recovery and CHP projects, flare stations, and numerous other biogas and renewable fuels projects in the US, and abroad.

About Duke Energy
Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 27,600 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050. The company has interim carbon emission targets of at least 50% reduction from electric generation by 2030, 50% for Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 upstream and downstream emissions by 2035, and 80% from electric generation by 2040. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear. 

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2023 "World's Most Admired Companies" list and Forbes' "World's Best Employers" list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

About Greater Commercial Lending
Greater Commercial Lending (GCL) is a credit organization that brings together banks, credit unions and other lenders to provide U.S. government-guaranteed loans to businesses and initiatives in rural and under-served markets throughout the U.S. and its territories. It helps finance key infrastructure services, like power, renewable energy, transportation and fiber optics, as well as schools, hospitals, restaurants, agriculture, hotels and manufacturers. GCL partners with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which guarantee loans, to arrange credit at favorable terms. GCL's network of lenders includes nearly 200 banks, credit unions and other financial institutions.

About Republic Services
Republic Services, Inc. is a leader in the environmental services industry. Through its subsidiaries, the Company provides customers with the most complete set of products and services, including recycling, solid waste, special waste, hazardous waste, container rental and field services. Republic's industry-leading commitments to advance circularity, reduce emissions and decarbonize operations are helping deliver on its vision to partner with customers to create a more sustainable world. For more information, please visit RepublicServices.com.

Media

EVENSOL
541-527-5892
mgillette@evensol.com

ESI
mskov@esisolutions.com

DUKE ENERGY
800-559-3853
Jason.Wheatley@duke-energy.com 

REPUBLIC SERVICES
480-757-9770
media@republicservices.com

 

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SOURCE Republic Services, Inc.

FAQ

Who developed the renewable natural gas facilities in North Carolina?

EVENSOL LLC developed the RNG facilities.

What is the purpose of the Foothills Renewables Project and the Upper Piedmont Renewables Project?

The projects convert landfill gas into renewable natural gas.

What is the total investment in the projects?

The combined investment in the projects exceeds $110 million.

Who is the equity investor in the projects?

Duke Energy is an equity investor in the projects.

Which organization provided funding for the projects?

The U.S. Department of Agriculture provided nearly $73 million in loans guaranteed by Greater Commercial Lending.