Renewable Natural Gas On-Road Fuel Use Continues to Grow

Biomethane Motor Fuel Use Increases 291% Since 2015, Offering Significant GHG Reduction Gains

Washington, DC – Natural Gas Vehicles for America (NGVAmerica) and Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas (RNG Coalition) today announced that 39 percent of all on-road fuel used in natural gas vehicles in calendar year 2019 was renewable natural gas (RNG).

Captured above ground from organic material in agricultural, wastewater, landfill or food waste, RNG produces carbon-neutral and even carbon-negative results when fueling on-road vehicles like short- and long-haul trucks, transit buses, and refuse and recycling collection vehicles. RNG fuel has the lowest EER-adjusted carbon intensity of any on-road motor fuel, as low as -400.

Over the last five years, RNG use as a transportation fuel has increased 291 percent, displacing close to 7.5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). NGVAmerica and RNG Coalition report that in 2019 a total of 717 million gallons (GGE) of natural gas were used as motor fuel. Of that, 277 million gallons (GGE) were renewable.

“RNG-fueled vehicles are the most immediate and cost-effective heavy-duty option when seeking to combat climate change and clear our air,” said Dan Gage, President of NGVAmerica. “Respiratory health depends on clean air, and natural gas fueled vehicles provide a proven, affordable, and easily scalable zero emission equivalent solution for commercial deployment today.”

“Renewable Natural Gas supply is growing,” said Johannes Escudero, CEO of Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas. “With 110 RNG production facilities transforming waste into fuel, and another 100 facilities on the way, we are increasingly able to offer consumers the opportunity to decarbonize with RNG – the cleanest of any fuel available today.”

RNG motor fuel use has eliminated 7,482,936 metric tons of CO2e over the last five years. Put into perspective, RNG motor fuel is:
Lowering greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to removing the GHG from 18,568,079,404 miles driven by the average passenger car, or from 745,676 trips around the earth;
Reducing CO2 emissions, equivalent to removing CO2 emission from 842,009,227 gallons of gasoline, or the total amount of fuel used annually by 63,171 transit buses; and
Sequestering carbon, equal to growing 123,731,931 tree seedlings for ten years, or 9,772,367 acres of U.S. forests for one year.

Details of today’s report – including graphics – can be accessed at: NGVAmerica’s website here and RNG Coalition’s website here.

###

1. California Air Resources Board, Low Carbon Fuel Standard Program, Certified Fuel Pathways, last updated March 11, 2020. Available at: https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/resources/documents/lcfs-pathway-certified-carbon-intensities.

2. GGE = gasoline gallon equivalent.

3. Total Natural Gas in Transportation Figure derived from U.S. EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook (2020).  RNG numbers derived from U.S. EPA Renewable Fuel Standard Program reporting.

4. 7,482,936 metric tons of CO₂e figure calculated using CARB’s LCFS carbon intensity numbers and the U.S. DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory Heavy-Duty Vehicle Emission Calculator.  GHG equivalency results calculated using the U.S. EPA’s calculator.  Transit bus fuel use provided by U.S. DOE AFDC.