Zero Carbon Champion
Anaergia
What is it?
One of the world’s largest listed organic waste to biomethane solutions companies. Beginning as a technology provider, Anaergia has now expanded into offering complete lifecycle solutions including project financing and operations. It has delivered over 1,500 resource recovery facilities on four continents over the last 25 years.
What has it done?
By helping its clients produce renewable fuel from waste, Anaergia has allowed them to greatly reduce and sometimes completely eliminate the carbon footprint of their plant operations. Whereas most companies are focusing on their own scope 1 and 2 emissions, Anaergia is putting all energy into reducing its downstream scope 3 emissions, those emitted by its clients.
What makes it special?
Anaergia continued its portfolio growth in 2022 by commissioning multiple plants. At all of them, Anaergia estimated the amount of CO2 reduction accounted by their installations, offset by the production of renewable fuel. The SoCal Biomethane at VVWRA in California will prevent 38,000 tonnes per year of CO2e being released into the atmosphere and another plant in Camden, New Jersey will prevent another 9,000 tonnes per year. Another plant in California, expected to be fully commissioned in 2023, will avert a further 14,000 tonnes of CO2 a year.
Perhaps the most significant contract Anaergia secured last year was in Singapore, to design and build a co-digestion facility which will treat food waste and sludge at the Tuas Nexus waste management facility. Co-digestion will increase the production of biogas at Tuas Nexus, which will be Singapore’s first integrated water and solid waste facility.
Other facilities such as the major facility in Rialto, California, are continuing to divert hundreds of tons of sludge from landfill every day, eliminating methane emissions and generating carbon-neutral fuel. Overall, Anaergia estimates it prevented 41 times more emissions last year than its operations emitted. Being in the unique position to be providing solutions that help utilities and industries directly reduce their emissions, the company considers that helping its clients to avoid emissions is where it can make the biggest difference.
Distinction
Suez
What is it?
A global operator of water and waste management systems. Since last year’s purchase of large parts of the company’s business by Veolia, the ‘new’ Suez has reformed to cement its place the second biggest private water operator in France and is active in a vast array of markets around the world.
What has it done?
The new Suez has found its footing and decided to affirm its presence with a new sustainability roadmap. With a net-zero roadmap of substance and clear deliverables, Suez has made sure all its commitments are clearly measurable, with concrete outcomes. These commitments focus on reducing emissions through renewable energy as much as increasing water savings and avoiding micropollutants.
What makes it special?
To accelerate emissions reduction, Suez is ramping up renewable energy generation to achieve energy self-sufficiency. The company aims to achieve full energy self-sufficiency in Europe by 2030, and 70% in the rest of the world by leveraging biogas production and solar farms on its sites through power-purchasing agreements.
Its scale gives Suez unique opportunities for synergies and internal offsetting to reduce carbon emissions across the business. Unlocking the biogas generation potential in solid waste and wastewater will go a long way in reducing emissions, and open spaces such as landfills are also perfect for installing solar panels. All this renewable energy can help power the energy-intensive water operations, as well as provide renewable energy for communities.
The company has also committed to investing €40 million a year into research and development for carbon capture technologies. Although biogas production from solid waste and sludge is a strong lever, some level of incineration is still required. Suez believes carbon capture is the best solution to mitigate those remaining emissions, and is advocating for other stakeholders to get involved.