Jemena welcomes the release of the New South Wales Renewable Fuels Strategy  

• Leading energy infrastructure company, Jemena, welcomes the New South Wales Government’s Renewable Fuels Strategy, released today, which has committed to expanding its Renewable Fuel Scheme to include biomethane.
• ARENA’s Bioenergy Roadmap found that Australia’s biomethane sector could contribute around $14 billion in extra GDP per annum, reduce carbon emissions by about 12 per cent, and create over 35,300 new jobs by 2050.
• New research from Blunomy finds approximately 460PJs of biomethane could technically be produced from existing feedstock – meeting up to approximately 96 per cent of current east-coast gas demand.

Leading energy infrastructure company Jemena has today welcomed the release of the New South Wales Government’s updated Renewable Fuels Strategy.

As part of the Strategy, the Renewable Fuel Scheme – which was originally designed to set targets for hydrogen production and support the growth of a hydrogen industry in Australia – has been expanded to include biomethane.

The Strategy has made several important recommendations and endorsements, including:

• Affirmed the gas network’s critical role in biomethane integration, committed to investigating strategic upgrades of it, and set a target of 15 per cent renewable industrial gas use by 2035.
• Allocated up to $40 million through the Industrial Decarbonisation Grant to accelerate biomethane production statewide.
• Offering up to $130 million in financial support for NSW renewable fuel production facilities and supply chain infrastructure under the Net Zero Manufacturing Initiative.
• Expanded the Renewable Fuel Scheme to include biomethane, delivering equivalent decarbonisation at lower cost to gas customers.

Biomethane is a renewable gas created by processing biogas, which is generated from decomposing organic waste. It is completely interchangeable with natural gas and is compatible with all existing gas network infrastructure, industrial manufacturing processes, gas appliances and businesses.

Jemena’s Managing Director, David Gillespie said the Strategy and expansion of the Scheme gives certainty to industry that biomethane is a fuel that is here to stay.

“Industry needs to decarbonise without disruption. Currently our industrial customers are at a cross-roads. They want to decarbonise but still require the high-heat that only gas can provide,” he said.

“A thriving biomethane sector will enable our industrial customers to reduce their emissions while at the same time continuing to provide jobs and produce everyday products Australians need like medicines, glass, fertilizer and steel.

“The NSW Government continues to demonstrate it understands the importance of ensuring all fuels are on the table when it comes to the energy transition.

“Situated between producers and customers, Jemena’s gas distribution network is prepared to facilitate the delivery of low-emission gases, including biomethane. This essential infrastructure supports decarbonisation efforts and contributes toward achieving the NSW Government's emissions reduction objectives.”

“This move also builds on the Federal Government’s Net Zero Plan which identified renewable gases, such as biomethane, as a priority area to decarbonise our economy. The expansion of the Scheme will help bring forward supply, which in turn, will be available to help decarbonise some of our hardest to electrify industrial users.

“The New South Wales’ Renewable Fuels Strategy and the government’s recognition of biomethane are two key building blocks which are enabling the development of Australia’s burgeoning biomethane sector.”

Mr Gillespie also highlighted findings from a new report produced by Blunomy which found approximately 460 petajoules (PJ) per annum of biomethane could be technically recovered from existing feedstocks such as food and garden waste, agricultural residues and livestock by-products. Biomethane from these sources could be directly injected into Australia’s existing gas infrastructure meeting up to approximately 96 per cent of Australia’s current east-coast gas demand.

Throughout 2024, Jemena signed a number of Memorandums of Understanding with proponents, including Optimal Renewable Energy, Valorify, Sojitz and Gwydir Circular Economy (GCE), who are looking to produce biomethane across regional New South Wales.

This work follows the commissioning of Jemena’s own biomethane production facility, the Malabar Biomethane Injection Plant, located at Malabar in Western Sydney. The plant, which was commissioned in mid-2023, is the first of its kind in Australia and has successfully demonstrated that biomethane can be produced and injected into the New South Wales gas distribution network.

For more information about Jemena’s Malabar Biomethane Injection Plant visit: https://www.jemena.com.au/future-energy/.