Leading policy, industry and technical experts to discuss the production of renewable natural gas for vehicle fuel and its role as a climate change strategy in the United States. Learn more at https://www.wri.org/events/2018/04/webinar-powering-vehicles-waste-renewable-natural-gas Join the conversation: #RenewableNaturalGas or #Biomethane

1. Webinar | Wednesday, April 25, 2018
Powering Vehicles With Waste:
Renewable Natural Gas as a Climate Strategy

2. World Resources Institute
Providing support for achieving emission reductions
and analysis on how leaders can achieve a stronger,
cleaner economy.

3. What is Renewable Natural Gas (RNG)?
● Biogas that has been processed into essentially pure
methane, which can be used interchangeably with
conventional natural gas in all its end uses.
● Other terms: upgraded biogas, biomethane, green gas.
● RNG is primarily made from anaerobic digestion of wet
organic wastes.

4. Outline
Anelia Milbrandt, Senior Analyst, National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
● Wet waste-to-energy resource potential in the United States.
● Example of ongoing work estimating feedstock cost.
Rebecca Gasper, Research Associate, World Resources Institute.
● New research on RNG as a climate strategy.
● Most promising RNG sources.
Patrick Browne, Director of Global Sustainability, UPS.
● Case study of RNG use in UPS’ vehicle fleets.
● How RNG fits into UPS greenhouse gas and sustainability goals.
Speakers will answer participants’ questions following the presentation.

5. Q&A at the end
Feel free to submit your questions in the webinar
submission “questions” box or email them to
yelena.akopian@wri.org during the presentation.

6. Anelia Milbrandt
Senior Analyst, National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Renewable Natural Gas Potential in the United
States: Resource Distribution, Quantity and Prices

7. Renewable Natural Gas Sources
• RNG sources (wet Waste-to-Energy [WTE] resources)
include:
• Animal manure
• Fats, oils, and greases (FOG)
• Sewage sludge
• Food waste
• These materials are used to produce biogas (RNG),
combusted, and are also of interest to advanced WTE
applications such as hydrothermal liquefaction.

8. Geographic Distribution of RNG Sources
Milbrandt, A., Seiple, T., Heimiller, D., Coleman, A., Skaggs, R. “Wet Waste-to-Energy
Resources in the United States”. Submitted to Resources, Conservation & Recycling.; Seiple, T. et al. “Municipal wastewater sludge as a
sustainable bioresource in the United States”. Journal of Environmental Management. Volume 197, July 2017, Pages 673-680.
DO NOT CITE OR DISTRIBUTE

9. RNG Potential
Wet WTE resources have the
equivalent energy content of
about one quad or 7 billion diesel
gallon equivalent (DGE) per year.
18%
of 2016 US
On-Highway
Diesel
Consumption
U.S. RNG production for transportation under the RFS
Source: EPA
Milbrandt, A., Seiple, T., Heimiller, D., Coleman, A., Skaggs, R. “Wet Waste-to-Energy; Resource Assessment in the United
States”. Submitted to Resources, Conservation & Recycling.
Less than 2% of the estimated
resource potential is currently
utilized for RNG production.

10. RNG Feedstock Prices
Methodology: model-derived estimates considering the following inputs:
• Resource quantity.
• Collection cost (if applicable).
• Processing cost (e.g. dewatering, storage, de-packaging).
• Disposal method/cost (e.g. tipping fee).
Highlights:
• Wet WTE feedstocks exhibit different prices across geographic areas.
• Feedstocks can be treated as commodities or wastes depending on location
and markets.
• If treated as a waste, feedstock price is controlled by the cost of its disposal.
• If the waste has been commoditized, its price is determined by market
demand.

11. RNG Feedstock Prices (Example)
Badgett, A., Newes, E., Milbrandt, A. 2018. “Economic Analysis of Wet Waste-to-Energy
Resources in the United States”. Bioresource Technology. In preparation.
DO NOT CITE OR DISTRIBUTE
• Price of food waste is variable
across the US as a function of
regional economics and policy.
• Non-residential food waste:
states with organic waste bans
exhibit the lowest (negative)
feedstock cost.
• Residential food waste: prices
depend on collection radius and
landfill tipping fees.

12. Acknowledgements
DOE’s Bioenergy Technologies Office: Brandon Hoffman and David Babson
Allegheny Science & Technology: Mark Philbrick
NREL Team PNNL Team
Alex Badgett Richard Skaggs
Donna Heimiller Timothy Seiple
Emily Newes Andre Coleman

13. NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.
www.nrel.gov
NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.
NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.
Thank You

14. Rebecca Gasper
Research Associate, World Resources Institute
New Research on the Potential for Renewable
Natural Gas as a Climate Strategy

15. RNG Production is on the Rise
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
millionethanol-equivalentgallons
Renewable Natural Gas Other Cellulosic Biofuel Required Cellulosic Volume
Source: U.S. EPA, 2018

16. RNG as a Climate Strategy
• How can RNG reduce
greenhouse gas emissions?
• Which project types achieve the
largest GHG reductions?
• Is RNG economically feasible?
Access the publication at: www.WRI.org/RNG

17. Key Findings
1. RNG can reduce GHGs when:
• It is made from waste;
• Its production captures methane.
2. RNG from food/yard waste and manure
projects can deliver the largest GHG
reductions.
3. These projects are economically feasible
with incentives, but barriers remain.
Photo: Flickr; California Energy Commission; “CleanWorld Sacramento Bioigester”

18. How Can RNG Production & Use Reduce Emissions?
Source: U.S. EPA, 2017

19. How Can RNG Production and Use Reduce GHG Emissions?
Source: WRI, 2018
Waste Managed in its Usual Way

20. Source: WRI, 2018
How Can RNG Production and Use Reduce GHG Emissions?
Waste Used to Make RNG Instead

21. RNG is Most Likely to Achieve Large GHG Reductions When:
It is made from waste Its production
captures methane
CH4

22. Source: WRI, 2018
When RNG Meets These Two Conditions, Avoided Emissions
Can Entirely Outweigh Emissions from its Production and Use

23. Which RNG Project Types Can Meet These Criteria?
Food scraps, yard trimmings.
Sludge where methane is uncontrolled.
Manure where methane is uncontrolled.
Landfills where methane is uncontrolled
or methane capture increases.

24. Diverted Food Waste and Manure Projects are Especially
Promising
Source: CARB, 2018

25. • Columbus, Ohio
• Fair Oaks Dairy, Indiana
Photo Credit: Fair Oaks Farms Adventure Center; Flickr
Successful Projects are Up and Running in...

26. But Challenges Remain
Source: WRI, 2018
Value of Incentives:
RFS: $20/MMBtu
LCFS: $4-45/MMBtu

27. Photo: Nicholas Tonelli, Flickr
• RNG could play a role in climate change strategies.
• RNG can reduce GHG emissions and meet other
environmental, social goals.
• To ensure large GHG reductions, RNG must be made from
waste that would otherwise emit methane.
• Impacts should be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Conclusions

28. Patrick Browne
Director of Global Sustainability, UPS
How RNG Fits Into a Business’ Greenhouse Gas
and Sustainability Goals.

29. Proprietary and Confidential: This presentation may not be used or disclosed to
others unless expressly authorized by UPS, NREL, and WRI.

30. Environmental Goals
Proprietary and Confidential: This presentation may not be used or disclosed to others unless
expressly authorized by UPS, NREL, and WRI.

31. The UPS Rolling Lab Tests New Tech in Real Time
Proprietary and Confidential: This presentation may not be used or disclosed to others unless
expressly authorized by UPS, NREL, and WRI.

32. UPS Investments Drive Alternative Fuel Market
37
CNG sites
15
LNG sites
55
Propane sites
combined
gallons (DGE)
of natural gas
191M since 2014
62M
gallons of
Renewable
Natural Gas (RNG) 19.8M since
2014
15M 11M
gallons of
Renewable Diesel (RD)
32M since 2014
>$750
million
global
investment
in natural gas vehicles and
fueling stations
Since 2009
Proprietary and Confidential: This presentation may not be used or disclosed to others unless
expressly authorized by UPS, NREL, and WRI.

33. Alternative Fuel Station Footprint - U.S. Domestic
Vancouver, BC
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) - 15 total
Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) - 37 total
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) - 55 total
Electric Vehicles (EV) – 31 total
Renewable
Natural Gas
Renewable
Diesel
Natural Gas Tractors: >7M
miles/week
Diesel Tractors: >15M
miles/week
Updated as of 03/22/2018
Proprietary and Confidential: This presentation may not be used or disclosed to others unless
expressly authorized by UPS, NREL, and WRI.

34. Q&A
Please submit your questions in the webinar
submission “questions” box or email them to
yelena.akopian@wri.org

35. For any further questions and if you would like to get in touch with
the speakers, please contact: andrew.pickens@wri.org
New WRI research on Renewable Natural Gas
as a climate strategy: www.WRI.org/RNG
Thank you for joining!