Enchanted Rock has announced what it’s calling the world’s first net-zero carbon electrical resiliency microgrid that utilises renewable natural gas.
It’s typical for microgrids to generate their power using fossil-fuelled combined heat and power (CHP) and reciprocating engine generators, but Enchanted Rock wants to reduce the amount of carbon emitted by these systems. That’s why it’s now offering customers the option of using renewable natural gas.
According to Enchanted Rock, renewable natural gas results from the capture and delivery of methane emissions from decomposing waste at landfills, agricultural waste, and water treatment. When injected into the existing natural gas pipeline system, it displaces the use of fossil-based gas, thus reducing the carbon equivalent emissions to zero or negative, depending on the source of the renewable natural gas.
Of course, this isn’t the only way companies can reduce the carbon emissions of their microgrid, after all it’s possible to utilise renewables such as solar or wind power to generate power locally. However, Enchanted Rock wants its microgrid to be used for power resiliency – and renewables can’t always be relied on.
So, why did the company opt for renewable natural gas? Well, according to the Environmental Defense Fund, methane has more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide over the first 20 years after it reaches the atmosphere. This, according to Enchanted Rock, reinforces how effective renewable natural gas is for a company’s ESG initiatives and underlying mitigation for downstream global warming.
“We’re thrilled to announce this exciting step in the evolution of our decarbonisation strategy,” said Thomas McAndrew, Founder and CEO of Enchanted Rock.
“Enchanted Rock is firmly dedicated to developing solutions to help our customers continue on the path towards a sustainable future. Our ability to integrate renewable natural gas into our offering to customers is an exciting step in our journey to help address today’s environmental challenges. Today’s leading enterprises face the unique challenge of mitigating the impact of increasingly frequent power outages while continuing to reduce their emissions footprint, and Enchanted Rock prides itself in its ability to deliver the cleanest, most resilient solution in the market to its customers.”
“We’ve heard repeatedly from our customers that they’re seeking to both reduce local pollution from diesel backup and to meet their robust ESG goals,” said Allan Schurr, Chief Commercial Officer of Enchanted Rock.
“Renewable natural gas is an essential component of a strategy to decarbonise America’s energy portfolio, and a no-regrets to addressing methane from society’s organic waste streams. Enchanted Rock has forged a sterling reputation for developing and deploying clean and reliable back-up power solutions, and today’s announcement is a strong proof point of their success,” said Johannes D. Escudero, Founder and CEO of the Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas.