Gas Plants
What should I know about the Gas Plants operating at the landfill?The gas recovery operation at Rumpke can refine 15 million cubic feet of methane gas per day, worth $74 million annually. It’s the largest of its kind in the world, even larger than the plant at
Staten Island’s Fresh Kills Landfill *. Gas recovery has been called a “green” operation, but the question is green for whom? Montauk Energy Capital operates the gas plant and pays royalties to the landfill. Montauk is a wholly owned subsidiary of Blue Wolf Energy Holdings which was acquired in 2007 by Johnnic Holdings. Johnnic is a South African investment holding company with investments in gaming and conference centers. Johnnic expanded into gas recovery because of Montauk’s lucrative contracts and potential growth in the
United States. Johnnic expects an attractive return on their investment so they can maximize wealth for their shareholders. How much do you think Johnnic investors care about the environment and quality of life in
Colerain
Township?
Several odor investigations by the Hamilton County Health Dept. indicate some of the more pungent garbage odors are the result of excavating into previously buried waste for gas lines or pipes. Report odors to the Health Department so they can be promptly addressed. See Resources & Links page for odor reporting numbers. * Source:
Cincinnati Enquirer June 10, 2007
Methane Gas
What should I know about methane gas extraction?
Montauk Energy Capital extracts natural gas from landfills and converts this into energy in the form of medium or high BTU gas or electricity. Montauk operates the methane gas plants at the Rumpke landfill. This following issues have been highlighted in Johnnic Holdings Limited financial reports. Johnnic, an investment holding company incorporated in the Republic of South Africa owns 90.5% of Montauk. 2008 financial results were disappointing. Highlights from March 2008 financial reports:
Montauk’s financial performance is “disappointing” and behind expectations for the year ended March 2008. In September 2007, Montauk's performance was also described as disappointing.
Montauk’s net loss for the year ended March 2008 was US$10.5 million.
Johnnic cites contributing factors such as operational issues which again delayed the commissioning of the new 6 mmscfd (“millions of standard cubic foot per day”) plant at the landfill site in Cincinnati, Ohio and problems with equipment suppliers and design issues.
The issues contributed to a capital overspend which caused Montauk to be in breach of facility covenants related to expansion capital expenditures. In September 2007, Johnnic planned to provide an additional $4-5 million of funding to Montauk; however, by February 2008, the funding required was $20 million to remedy the current breach and obtain a waiver for the impending future breaches.
Also concerning, a Pennsylvania utility refused to accept delivery of gas from two of Montauk’s active facilities in Valley and Monroeville and provided notice of it's plans to terminate the agreement.
