FlexEnergy to Build Landfill Gas to Energy Unit in Calif.

FlexEnergy Inc. has gotten approval to build a landfill gas-to-energy operation in Orange, Calif.

Flex OC Renewables, a subsidiary of Irvine, Calif.-based FlexEnergy, will install and operate a power generating system using landfill gas from the closed Santiago Canyon Landfill in Orange. The company said in a news release that an assessment of the available landfill gas at the site indicates power production could be between 1.5 and 2 megawatts of power, enough to power 1,500 to 2,000 homes. FlexEnergy expects to complete the project this year.

The project will use several Flex Powerstation FP250 turbines, which use an advanced thermal oxidizer to destroy methane within a target temperature range that is high enough to avoid the creation of volatile organic compounds and carbon monoxide, yet low enough to prevent the formation of nitrous oxide.

The company said the project will help Orange County meet tougher air quality emission regulations for waste gases scheduled to take effect in 2013. Santiago Canyon Landfill has been closed since 1988 and has been flaring off methane from the decomposed trash.

"By installing the Flex Powerstation FP250 power generation system, we will be able to beneficially reuse landfill gas to generate a source of revenue and renewable energy," said FlexEnergy CEO Joseph Perry.