The 400 kWh CHP system will be installed in Lynden, Washington, about 95 miles north of Seattle. It is scheduled to be installed in late 2010. Lynden-based DARITECH Inc. will build the anaerobic digester, and the Van Dyk Dairy Farm owns and operates the biogas plant. The plant is expected to produce 4706 MW of thermal energy and 3320 MW of electricity per year, with any excess power sold to the grid. The combined heat and power plant uses the 2G agenitor, a thermodynamically optimized MAN cogeneration gas engine coupled with the patented 2G-Drive technology, especially developed for biogas operations. Benefits over conventional MAN, or any other gas engine, include much higher efficiencies, extended life and less maintenance cost.

“The increased degree of electrical efficiency is crucial for successful biogas plant operations. At the end of the day, every additional percent of increased efficiency makes a huge contribution to the overall project bottom line, resulting in more profitability and a much better economy for the system operator,” says Michael Turwitt, president and CEO of 2G CENERGY Power Systems Technologies Inc.

The combined heat and power (CHP) plant – the first thermodynamically optimized biogas cogeneration plant of this kind in the State of Washington – has enough capacity to power 373 homes. “According to the Department of Energy, the average household in the U.S. uses about 8,900 kW of electricity each year. Even small dairy farms have the ability to juice up hundreds of homes,” Turwitt explains.

—From 2G CENERGY news release