Clean Energy launches large-scale dairy RNG facility in Idaho
East Valley site produces negative carbon-intensity renewable gas for U.S. transport fleets.
Clean Energy Fuels has started production at a renewable natural gas (RNG) facility at East Valley Cattle in Jerome, Idaho, one of the largest dairies and RNG sites in North America. The project captures methane from manure at a farm with more than 35,000 cows and injects processed gas into the interstate pipeline for use as a lower-carbon transportation fuel.
The facility operates six anaerobic digesters and processes over 5 million gallons of manure daily using large-scale treatment systems and separation technology. This enables the conversion of waste into pipeline-quality RNG while reusing byproducts onsite as livestock bedding and fertilizer.
Will Flanagan, Vice President of Strategic Development at Clean Energy, said: “We’re capturing methane, cleaning it up and injecting it on-site while replacing natural gas that would have been of fossil origin. It’s a double offset renewable energy.”
The project has received approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Renewable Fuel Standard and from the California Air Resources Board, allowing it to generate environmental credits tied to emissions reductions. The RNG produced is classified as having negative carbon intensity due to methane capture, which avoids emissions that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere.
Developed through a joint venture with bp, the facility highlights the role of RNG as a scalable alternative to diesel, offering lower lifecycle emissions while integrating with existing energy infrastructure.
