Anaergia to supply RNG to FuelCell Energy to produce clean hydrogen for Toyota

FuelCell Energy’s Tri-gen system will produce approximately 1.3 tpd of renewable hydrogen, which will fuel Toyota Mirai vehicles. The fuel cells will also produce a net 2.3 MW of electricity — enough to power Toyota's logistics services centre — and will add renewable electricity to the grid, as well as produce roughly 1400 gal./d of water that will be used for carwashing operations.

Anaergia’s supply of RNG, which is the same molecule as methane, will be produced from food waste and municipal wastewater at the company’s SoCal Biomethane plant in Victorville, California, and will be sold and delivered to FuelCell Energy through Anew, the exclusive RNG marketer for the Victorville facility. Because the methane sourced from Anaergia is made from renewable sources that otherwise emit fugitive methane emissions from decomposition, it is considered carbon-negative. Thus, when this carbon-negative RNG is then converted to hydrogen and electricity in FuelCell Energy’s Tri-gen system, both outputs are considered zero-emissions and carbon-negative.

Converting this RNG to renewable electricity is expected to avoid more than 9000 tpy of grid electricity greenhouse gas emissions. The renewable hydrogen is expected to avoid more than 4000 t of annual greenhouse gas emissions compared to the emissions produced if the hydrogen had been made by conventional steam reforming of fossil natural gas. FuelCell Energy’s Tri-gen system will also reduce the air pollution that disproportionately impacts nearby communities, as the fuel cell’s chemical reaction is virtually free of NOx, SOx, and particulate matter emissions.

Anaergia’s SoCal Biomethane facility was developed through a public-private partnership (P3) with the Victor Valley Wastewater Reclamation Authority, and financing partner, North Sky Capital.

“We are proud to support Toyota’s decarbonisation goals at one of the largest ports in the world with the supply of carbon-negative RNG that enables emissions-free hydrogen fuel” said Yaniv Scherson, Chief Operating Officer of Anaergia. “Carbon-negative fuels like renewable natural gas are essential to creating a net zero emissions world. Because it’s a drop-in fuel, renewable natural gas enables rapid decarbonisation. It’s an immediately dispatchable platform for electricity and hydrogen production,” Scherson said.

“RNG is a great way to produce renewable hydrogen and electricity at the scale required to support our Logistics facility’s carbon-neutral goal,” said Mark Yamauchi, Sustainability Manager for Toyota Motor North America. “And because it is made from waste, renewable natural gas creates the type of circular economy that Toyota is working to expand.”

“We are excited to partner with Anaergia to supply our Tri-gen system with RNG as it is an effective way to create renewable hydrogen at distributed scale local to the end use, avoiding the cost and emissions associated with delivery of hydrogen to remote users. This allows us to help customers, like Toyota, achieve their sustainability goals by producing emissions-free hydrogen, electricity, and water,” said Tony Leo, Chief Technology Officer, FuelCell Energy.

“We are pleased to celebrate another milestone in our long-standing collaboration with Anaergia and to engage with FuelCell Energy and Toyota in realising the zero-emissions benefits of RNG,” said Randy Lack, Head of Portfolio Management for Anew Climate. “Through climate leadership as exemplified by this agreement we are creating markets for environmental impact that benefit our broader community and the climate.”

Read the article online at: https://www.globalhydrogenreview.com/hydrogen/03052023/anaergia-to-supply-rng-to-fuelcell-energy-to-produce-clean-hydrogen-for-toyota/