Archaea opens first RNG facility under BP America

Archaea Energy, a subsidiary of Houston-based BP America, has announced the official startup of its original Archaea Modular Design (AMD) renewable natural gas (RNG) plant in Medora, Indiana.

Located next to a landfill owned by Cincinnati-based Rumpke Waste and Recycling, this is the first plant to come online since BP’s acquisition of Archaea in December 2022. A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place at the facility on the morning of Oct. 4.

 gas, a natural byproduct of decomposing waste in landfills, is a form of greenhouse gas. Using the AMD design, the Medora plant captures the gas from Rumpke’s landfill and converts it to electricity, heat or renewable natural gas, which leads to cleaner air, less odor and more sustainable energy compared with that derived from traditional fossil fuel.

The Medora plant can process 3,200 standard cubic feet per minute (scfm) of landfill gas into RNG—enough gas to heat around 13,026 homes annually, according to the EPA’s Landfill Gas Energy Benefits Calculator. 

“What we are doing at the Medora plant is phenomenal, and it’s just the beginning of what’s to come at Archaea,” Archaea Energy CEO Starlee Sykes says. “This is a powerful step forward in our net zero journey to capture landfill emissions and provide customers with lower emission, lower carbon fuel.  Our goal is to safely bring several AMD plants online this year. I’m in awe of our team who designed, engineered and built this facility, and we can’t wait to bring more online across the U.S.”

Traditionally, RNG plants have been custom-built, but the Archaea Modular Design allows plants to be built on skids with interchangeable components. Using a standardized modular design leads to faster builds than previous industry standards.  

 “Our family company is constantly looking for technologies to lessen our overall impact and further our efforts to protect and preserve the environment,” Rumpke Waste & Recycling Area President Jeff Rumpke says. “The addition of Archaea Energy’s RNG plant at our site will help further reduce emissions and give residents and businesses assurance that their waste is not only being properly disposed of but also being put to good use.”

 With the acquisition of Archaea, bp says it is now the largest RNG producer in the U.S., enhancing its ability to support customers’ decarbonization goals and reducing the average lifecycle carbon intensity of the energy products it sells.  

Bioenergy is one of five strategic transition growth engines that bp intends to expand rapidly through this decade expecting to deliver around $2 billion earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in 2025 and aiming to deliver more than $4 billion in 2030. In addition to bioenergy, bp’s transition growth engines include convenience, EV charging, renewables and power, and hydrogen.

 The energy company expects to invest up to $8 billion more in its transition growth businesses this decade to reach more than 40 percent of its total annual capital expenditure by 2025, aiming to expand that piece of the pie to around 50 percent by 2030.