California Gas Utilities Seek Place in GHG Plans

Argus Daily: Southern California Gas could switch its methane supplies from non-fossil sources to either captured methane from decomposing biomass, synthetic natural gas, or hydrogen, utility president Dennis Arriola said at the VerdeXchange conference in Los Angeles this week.

California gas utilities seek place in GHG plans   -  28 Jan 15, 16:34 - Emissions, Natural gas, Regulation, Climate change

Portland, 28 January (Argus) — Natural gas utilities in California are pushing for inclusion in the state's long-run climate and air quality plans, arguing they can decarbonize the fuel they supply.

Southern California Gas could switch its methane supplies from non-fossil sources to either captured methane from decomposing biomass, synthetic natural gas, or hydrogen, utility president Dennis Arriola said at the VerdeXchange conference in Los Angeles this week.

Biomass-based gas, also known as biogas, from landfills and other sources is already being injected into the interstate natural gas pipeline network, but only in limited quantities. Synthetic natural gas would be created from hydrogen produced by electrolysis using renewable power supplies and carbon dioxide captured from flue gases, air or seawater.

While those sources and technologies exist, the processes need to be more efficient and cost-effective to compete, according to a study by Energy Environmental Economics released yesterday. But the study, done for Southern California Gas, says they could still end up cheaper than trying to move some sectors to widespread electrification.

In the near-term, a shift towards natural-gas vehicles could help parts of southern California meet federal ozone air quality standards, which will require major cuts in emissions of conventional air pollutants from transportation and other sectors over the next 10-15 years, Arriola said.

The head of California's air regulator said that the agency will remain fuel-neutral as it works to meet the state's goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80pc by 2050.

"Natural gas is an energy carrier, like any energy carrier that we are looking at," Air Resources Board chairman Mary Nichols said. While the agency currently does not see a significant role for fossil-fuel combustion in the state by 2050, there may still be "quite a bit of room for some things that we are not going to be able to replace," she said.

Nichols said she believes that California will need to maintain diversity in its energy supplies, but cautioned that the main driver in the near term will be finding "ways to, as quickly as possible, figure out what is economical, because the economics [of low carbon energy] are much murkier than the science and technology in this issue."

Conference: