U.S. DOE remains serious about the future of renewable propane as a priority, says PERC

Tucker Perkins, president and CEO of the Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) analysed the current panorama and the future of renewable Liquid Gas in the United States and highlighted that this fuel will sustain the momentum it has built over the past five years.

“Our industry has long championed a carbon-cutting approach that includes propane, renewable propane, electrification and a host of other innovative solutions — a wide path — to lower emissions. Now, the wide path is poised to have its moment,” he said.

According to the expert, that is where renewable Liquid Gas fits in. It is another ultra-low-carbon tool available to address the growing need for clean energy in the toughest sectors to decarbonise. As production methods are perfected and costs come down, the fuel could enter the enormous home and commercial building heating markets as well. It could also serve to support LPG supply during periods of heavy demand.

Perkins also recalled that the pace of scientific research and innovation aimed at expanding renewable Liquid Gas production has accelerated sharply in just the last months. In September 2024, the PERC announced that researchers at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) had developed efficient technology capable of producing LPG from CO2 and electricity from intermittent renewables, such as wind and solar. The process could yield a fuel with negative carbon intensity.

The IIT project was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy program to receive nearly USD 4 million in funding to scale up the technology. That work is underway right now.

Moreover, in December, the DOE’s Bioenergy Technologies Office launched their intent to issue up to USD 23 million in funding for research and development of LPG from domestic renewable feedstock.

For Perkins, this support means the DOE remains serious about the future of renewable Liquid Gas as a priority, not just as a by-product. And even though the promise of these projects is still years away from being fully realised, the CEO of PERC believes “it ultimately boils down to how we view and use renewable propane even if we aren’t selling it.”

“I see it as a highly valuable tool in propane’s own wide-path toolbox — part of a broader suite of energy services the industry provides to clean energy-conscious customers,” he added.

Source: BPN

Photo: PERC