AstraZeneca to leverage its global industrial-scale manufacturing and digital capabilities to boost US renewable natural gas productivity
08 November 2023 - 1:00PM
Business Wire
Expanded collaboration with Vanguard
Renewables aims to significantly increase the productivity of US
renewable natural gas generation
More efficient production would aim to
accelerate parity for renewable natural gas and advance the
transition to clean energy
AstraZeneca (AZN) is leveraging its global industrial-scale
manufacturing and digital capabilities to boost US renewable
natural gas (RNG) productivity through a planned expanded
collaboration with Vanguard Renewables. With an ambition of
achieving a multiple fold increase in productivity, the
collaboration aims to accelerate parity with fossil fuel-generated
natural gas.
Drawing on AstraZeneca’s global manufacturing, supply chain,
digital and scientific expertise, the companies plan to work
together to increase RNG yield and generate a step change
improvement in the production of RNG. Technological improvements
and enhanced production can increase access and cost-effectiveness
of RNG, a current barrier to widespread renewable energy
deployment. The collaboration also aims to add RNG capacity to the
US power grid and build capabilities in sustainable innovation for
broader public benefit.
Pam Cheng, Executive Vice President of Global Operations &
IT and Chief Sustainability Officer, AstraZeneca, said: “The
reality is that there are many challenges in adopting new energy
sources and bold action is needed if we are going to successfully
transition to green energy. Our collaboration with Vanguard
Renewables is another important milestone on our path to net zero
by driving deep decarbonization, not just across AstraZeneca’s own
operations but across the healthcare sector and beyond.”
Starting with three priority areas, the collaboration will
pursue capacity and design improvements to Vanguard Renewables’
Farm Powered® process via innovative controls and chemistry to more
quickly produce RNG using farm-based anaerobic digestion (AD) from
food and farm waste; it also aims to develop Digital Twins for the
AD process to enable rapid experimentation and modeling including
the potential integration of artificial intelligence (AI); and
thirdly aims to enhance supply chain robustness to scale
manufacturing and supply.
Neil H. Smith, Chief Executive Officer at Vanguard Renewables
stated: “As our partnership with AstraZeneca continues to develop,
we believe this cross-collaboration will help us achieve our joint
mission of forging a path to net zero.”
This announcement builds on the sector-first collaboration
announced in June between AstraZeneca and Vanguard Renewables to
deliver RNG to all of AstraZeneca’s US research and manufacturing
sites by the end of 2026.
This planned collaboration contributes to the commitments made
in AstraZeneca’s flagship Ambition Zero Carbon strategy for value
chain decarbonization and is a bold step in the Company’s efforts
to accelerate broader health sector decarbonization. The Company is
on track to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from its global
operations (Scope 1 and 2) by 98% by 2026 from a 2015 baseline, and
by 2030, AstraZeneca aims to halve its entire value chain
footprint, and be on the way to becoming science-based net zero by
2045 at the latest.
Notes:
Anaerobic Digestion
Inedible or unsaleable food and beverage waste from the
manufacturing and retail sectors is collected, sorted, depackaged
on-site, and combined with dairy farm manure in a sealed
biodigester tank. Once combined in the biodigester, microorganisms
that naturally occur in manure digest the waste, converting sugars,
fats and other compounds into biogas. Harnessing the waste’s energy
captures as much as 95% of the potential greenhouse gas emissions
that would result if food and beverage waste were sent to a
landfill or if the farm manure were field-applied. The process
produces RNG that is upgraded to pipeline-quality gas and injected
into the existing pipeline infrastructure on-site, displacing
traditional fossil fuels. The biogas is then used for heating and
cooling or can be used to make Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) for
vehicles. The by-products of the anaerobic digestion process
include a low-carbon and nutrient dense fertilizer (digestate) that
reduces the farm’s dependency on chemical fertilizers, and a dry
by-product which is used for animal bedding. When food and beverage
manufacturers send their organic waste to a Farm Powered site and
purchase the RNG created by their waste to power their plants, they
are creating a closed-loop solution that helps to address Scope 1
and 3 emissions in their business practices.
About AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company
that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of
prescription medicines in Oncology, Rare Diseases and
BioPharmaceuticals, including Cardiovascular, Renal &
Metabolism, and Respiratory & Immunology. Based in Cambridge,
UK, AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries, and its innovative
medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide. For more
information, please visit www.astrazeneca-us.com and follow us on
social media @AstraZeneca.
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