Ohio Landfill Signs Energy Agreement

The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO ) has signed an agreement with Renewco-FCS LLC that “outlines terms of a waste-to-energy program that will convert naturally-occurring gases from the Franklin County (Ohio) Sanitary Landfill into pipeline-quality natural gas,” according to SWACO Executive Director Ronald Mills.

In a SWACO announcement, Mills says, “This project will reduce pollution at the landfill, create a revenue stream to help defray costs for the ratepayers in Franklin County and produce a renewable ‘green’ gas available to the marketplace.” Currently, notes Mills, the landfill gas at the Grove City, Ohio, site (near Columbus) is eliminated via two flares at the landfill.

Mills says SWACO and Renewco have agreed to a 20-year contract “where Renewco agrees to build, fund and manage a waste-to-energy facility on landfill land that is leased from SWACO.”

Mills also notes that completion of the two-decade project “is contingent on other facets of the agreement being executed, including: regulatory approval, a signed land lease agreement and Renewco securing signed contracts for the purchase of the gas.”

According to Mills, Renewco could begin installing equipment at the 283-acre landfill as early as February 2013, with a goal of beginning operations in the fall of 2014.

Renewco is a joint venture between natural gas distribution company AGL Resources, Atlanta, and landfill gas-to-energy systems maker Keystone Renewable Energy LLC, Greensburg, Pa.

“The signed agreement is a major step forward in converting landfill gas into a commodity that can generate thousands of dollars daily once in operation,” says Mills.