GFL Environmental announces RNG projects at two landfills

Ontario-based GFL Environmental Inc. has announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, GFL Renewables LLC, will enter into a joint venture with affiliates of Opal Fuels LLC for the development, construction and operation of renewable natural gas (RNG) facilities.

The RNG facilities will be developed at two of GFL’s existing municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills: the Arbor Hills Landfill in Michigan and the Sampson County Landfill in North Carolina.

As a news release states, GFL Renewables and Opal Fuels will be 50-50 participants in the joint venture created for these projects. Opal Fuels will oversee construction, as well as develop and operate the facilities.

Both projects will convert methane gas from collection systems at the MSW landfills into commercial-grade, pipeline-quality RNG that can be used in commercial and industrial direct-use applications, including as fuel for natural gas-powered vehicles, the company says.

GFL says the Arbor Hills Landfill RNG project is expected to produce approximately 2 million metric million British thermal units (MMBtu) of RNG each year. Construction of the facility is projected to begin in the first quarter of 2022, with the commencement of operations anticipated for the end of the first quarter of 2023.

The Sampson County Landfill RNG project is expected to produce approximately 1 million MMBtu of RNG each year. Construction of the facility is expected to commence by the second quarter of 2022 and commencement of operations is currently projected for the end of the second quarter of 2023.

GFL’s capital investment in the joint venture with Opal Fuels will total approximately $70 million over the next 18 months and generate over 3 million MMBtu per year of RNG.

"We are continuing to work on arrangements with leading developers and distributors at other GFL landfills and in the coming weeks, expect to announce arrangements for RNG facilities at 4 additional GFL landfill sites that are expected to generate approximately 2 million MMBtu of pipeline-quality RNG,” says Patrick Dovigi, founder and CEO of GFL. “The six projects in our base case are expected to generate over US$65 million … in incremental annual free cash flow and put us well on our way to realizing the previously stated opportunities within our GFL Renewables initiatives."

He continues, “These facilities will also significantly advance our own sustainability goals and those of our customers, by reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the beneficial reuse of RNG to replace virgin fuel applications. These collaborations with industry leaders like OPAL Fuels are central to achieving GFL's ambitions for a low carbon future."