Area dairies are serving as a source of locally-produced natural gas for Sioux Center.
Several Sioux County dairies near Maurice are producing renewable natural gas (RNG) with methane digesters. The company producing this natural gas, West Branch RNG, is connected to Sioux Center’s natural gas distribution system and has begun injecting and selling natural gas to Sioux Center.
“As energy independence becomes more important and we are thinking more about where our energy comes from, it is a good addition to have a source locally-produced in Sioux County,” said Assistant Utilities Manager Adam Fedders. “This is a great way for us to partner with the county and our ag community in locally-produced natural gas.”
West Branch RNG uses a 2.5-million gallon digester to collect the natural gas, which is then processed on site. Before injecting gas into an 8-mile pipeline to Sioux Center’s system, the natural gas is scrubbed and monitored to ensure the quality meets the same standards of Northern Natural Gas, which transports the rest of Sioux Center’s natural gas.
West Branch RNG is supplying around 450 MMBtu of natural gas to Sioux Center a day, which is roughly 1/3 of what the community uses per day depending on the season and weather.