A groundbreaking project in southern Alberta will utilize manure from thousands of cattle to produce renewable natural gas, while simultaneously capturing and storing harmful carbon dioxide emissions. Taurus Canada Renewable Natural Gas Corp. has revealed plans to construct an integrated anaerobic digestion and carbon sequestration facility near Lethbridge, with financial support from both the Alberta and federal governments.
Once operational, the Central Farms facility will convert 130,000 tonnes of manure from local cattle feedlots into 360,000 gigajoules of natural gas annually, providing energy equivalent to powering approximately 4,000 homes or the entire Town of Coaldale. This initiative is part of six projects announced as recipients of a $28 million grant from Emissions Reduction Alberta’s Industrial Transformation Challenge.
With a total project cost of $85 million, Taurus secured a $10 million grant from the Alberta government, received $3.4 million from the federal Low Carbon Economy Fund, and utilized its own funding sources to complete the funding. Alberta’s Environment Minister Grant Hunter expressed support for local innovators, emphasizing the positive impacts of the project on the energy sector, Alberta’s economy, and the environment.
The process of converting manure into power involves several steps, including the collection of livestock manure from feedlots, pre-treatment to create a slurry, anaerobic digestion in enclosed tanks, and the storage of resulting biogas and digestate. Carbon dioxide produced during the process will be injected into deep underground wells for long-term storage.
The renewable natural gas will be distributed through pipelines, while various forms of digestate will be generated for agricultural use. Ryan Kasko, CEO of Kasko Cattle Company, lauded the partnership with Taurus as a natural progression in leveraging food production for energy generation. Stakeholders, including surface rights advocate Daryl Bennett, praised the environmentally responsible approach of the project in managing manure while reducing carbon emissions and benefiting local agriculture.