VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – EverGen, Canada’s Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) Infrastructure Platform, announces that its wholly-owned subsidiary Net Zero Waste Abbotsford Inc. is entering into a 20-year offtake agreement with FortisBC Energy Inc. (Fortis BC). Under the agreement, FortisBC will purchase up to 173,000 gigajoules of RNG annually for injection into its natural gas system, upon completion of an anaerobic digester project at EverGen’s existing Net Zero Waste Abbotsford composting and organic processing facility in Abbotsford, British Columbia. Once approved by the British Columbia Utilities Commission and other regulatory agencies, the project would convert municipal and commercial organic waste into enough energy to meet the needs of approximately 1,900 residential homes.
Renewable Natural Gas is a carbon neutral energy made from decomposing organic waste. It displaces conventional natural gas in existing natural gas lines, thereby reducing the emissions from the natural gas system. Increasing the amount of renewable gas in FortisBC’s system is key to the organization achieving its 30BY30 target – an ambitious goal to reduce its customers’ greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent by 2030. FortisBC’s 30BY30 target is among the most ambitious emissions reductions targets in the Canadian utility sector, and aligns with the provincial government’s goals in its CleanBC plan.
“This agreement is truly a win for everyone involved—providing a solution and highest end use for organic waste in the Lower Mainland region, creating jobs in the local community, and capturing greenhouse gases to supply low-carbon energy to FortisBC’s customers,” says EverGen Co-Founder and CEO Chase Edgelow. “For EverGen, it’s another important step toward our foundational goals—expediting Canada’s journey to compete on the global RNG stage, combating climate change, and helping communities contribute to a carbon-free future, starting right here on the West Coast.”
“Within our 30BY30 target is a goal to have approximately 15 per cent of our gas supply be carbon neutral by 2030. In order to get there, we need new suppliers that are committed to increasing the amount of renewable gas produced in the province,” said Dave Bennett, director of renewable gas and low carbon fuels with FortisBC. “I congratulate the EverGen team for their leadership in climate action, and look forward to working together to build a lower carbon future.”
EverGen plans to begin construction on the anaerobic digester at its Net Zero Waste Abbotsford facility later this year. Upon regulatory approval and completion, EverGen expects to start supplying FortisBC with Renewable Natural Gas by the end of 2022.
This agreement comes on the heels of EverGen’s most recent acquisition of Fraser Valley Biogas, BC’s original RNG project. The Fraser Valley Biogas facility currently produces over 80,000 gigajoules of RNG annually and has supplied RNG to FortisBC for the last decade. EverGen also owns Sea to Sky Soils, a composting and organic processing facility near Pemberton, British Columbia. Both Sea to Sky Soils and Net Zero Waste Abbotsford accept municipal organic waste and recycle it using proven composting technology into soil amendments and Class A compost for use by local farms and developers as part of the circular economy.
For more information about EverGen, please visit www.evergeninfra.com.
For more information about FortisBC’s RNG program, please visit www.fortisbc.com/RNG.
For more information about EverGen Infrastructure Corp. and our projects, please visit www.evergeninfra.com.