Newport Beach-based Clean Energy Fuels said Wednesday it started construction of a renewable natural gas production facility at South Fork Dairy in Dimmitt in Castro County. Groundbreaking occurred for a facility that will produce RNG, an ultra-clean transportation fuel that is made from organic waste and receives a negative carbon intensity score. South Fork Dairy has a herd of 16,000 cows.
The plant is expected to cost $85 million with completion in 2025, and it is expected to be one of the nation’s biggest RNG production developments. Annual production is forecast at 2.6 million gallons of RNG for Clean Energy Fuels’ nationwide network of stations.
Clay Corbus, senior vice president of Clean Energy Fuels, said, “We are excited to begin construction on the South Fork Texas project.” Frank Brand, owner of South Fork Dairy, added, “The project not only helps us convert our waste into a clean, useable, sustainable fuel, but it also helps us with managing manure which for a daily of our size is quite a feat. It’s a direction I hope many other dairies will look to pursuing.”
According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, agriculture accounts for nearly 10 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.