Tidewater subsidiary enters 20-year RNG offtake deal

Calgary, Alberta-based Tidewater Renewables Ltd. has announced that its majority-owned subsidiary Rimrock Renewables Ltd. Partnership has entered into a 20-year offtake agreement with FortisBC Energy Inc.

Under the terms of the agreement, FortisBC says it expects to purchase up to 525,000 gigajoules (GJ) of renewable natural gas (RNG) annually from a new RNG facility located in Foothills County near High River, Alberta.

“On behalf of the entire team at Tidewater Renewables, I want to congratulate our partners at FortisBC for their leadership in climate action and look forward to working together to build a lower carbon future,” Tidewater Renewables Executive Chairman and CEO Joel MacLeod says. “The 20-year offtake agreement by FortisBC marks a significant milestone for the RNG facility and enhances the economic certainty of the project.”

Upon completion, the RNG facility, which still is subject to regulatory approval by the British Columbia Utilities Commission, would convert organic material into enough energy to meet the needs of more than 5,800 homeowners in British Columbia.

FortisBC Director of Renewable Gas and Low Carbon Fuels David Bennett says increasing RNG and other low-carbon fuels can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“It is with agreements like these, with dedicated RNG suppliers such as Tidewater Renewables, that we can make commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in our system and for our customers,” he says.

Tidewater says a decision by the British Columbia Utilities Commission is expected during the first quarter of 2023. Tidewater Renewables expects to start supplying FortisBC with RNG by the first half of 2024. Earlier this year, Tidewater announced the facility is expected to cost $65 million to $70 million. Upon completion, the RNG facility is expected to generate a gross annual EBITDA of $10 million, says Tidewater.

April 4, Tidewater Renewables closed a strategic renewable natural gas and feedstock partnership with Rimrock. Following the announcement of that partnership, Tidewater Renewables, through Rimrock, commenced construction of the RNG facility. The RNG facility will convert feedlot manure to pipeline-quality RNG, removing more carbon from the environment than it produces through an anaerobic digestion and gasification process. Through its feedstock partnership, Tidewater Renewables expects to secure 100 percent of the project’s feedstock requirements for the entirety of the life of the project by the start of commercial operations of the RNG facility.