Amane Partner Amedeo Vaccani and Principal Vinod Jose got a glimpse at the future of the fast-growing renewable natural gas (RNG) industry at Biogas Americas 2023 in Chicago in May. With more than 1,500 attendees – double the number of last year’s attendees – the conference reflected the growing momentum and excitement generated by this versatile resource.

Photo via Biogas Americas

Reflecting on his experience, Vinod dubbed RNG, also known as biomethane in Europe, as the “Swiss Army Knife’ in the renewable energy basket, due to the fact that it can be generated using multiple feedstock options, including methane from dairy farms, landfill gas, agricultural waste, and municipal waste, as well as the fact that it offers a variety of end uses, including electricity generation, transportation, or direct pipeline injection.

“Much of the conference focused on the fact that this high degree of versatility also creates unique challenges and makes understanding the opportunities in RNG a bit more complex,” said Vinod.

“For instance, experts highlighted the lack of a standard methodology in determining the Carbon Intensity (CI) score of RNG, which is crucial for evaluating the commercial viability of projects.”

Keynote speakers, including Alexis Glick, CEO of Nature Energy, and Neil Smith, CEO of Vanguard Renewables, emphasized the need for simplification, standardization, and increased collaboration within the industry as a means of overcoming this and other challenges.

“These are still early days for this industry, but Amane is now supporting more companies and investors in exploring opportunities in the RNG sector and I’m excited to see the expanding role this resource can play in the renewable energy mix,” added Vinod.