Latest news with #greenhouseGases
Mail & Guardian
24-05-2025
- Business
- Mail & Guardian
Climate crisis: Look to circular economies
Catching on: Biogas production is starting to find traction in South Africa with companies such as Elgin Fruit Juices and PepsiCo's Simba chips plant as well as small-scale farmers and schools. Photo: Supplied Cutting greenhouse gases from energy production and transport tends to take centre stage when we talk about fighting climate change, but circular economies — keeping materials in use for as long as possible through reuse, recycling, repair and design innovation — is just as important. Roughly 45% of global greenhouse gas emissions come from the way we produce and use materials, according to a The paper illustrates how preventing and reducing waste, regenerating farmland and keeping materials in use can reduce carbon emissions by 9.3 billion tonnes. 'That is equivalent to eliminating current emissions from all forms of transport globally,' it states. Non-energy or transport-related emissions are primarily from the production of materials such as cement, steel, plastic and aluminium, as well as from agriculture and food production. It also includes emissions from organic waste in landfills that emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas that has a much stronger warming effect than carbon dioxide emitted by cars, for instance. These fall under huge, fast-growing economic sectors, so reducing their effect is essential in the battle against climate change, says Good Governance Africa's director of research, Ross Harvey. 'We have 'Re-use, recycling and detoxification in systems-based circular economies can drastically reduce the load on these planetary boundaries, and aid biodiversity recovery,' he says. Circular economies were a dominant theme at this year's Forerunners in the biogas sector include Bio2Watt's large-scale biogas plants in Bronkhorstspruit, Gauteng, and the Western Cape ( Biogas production works by breaking down organic material such as food waste, manure and sewage to produce a methane-rich renewable fuel and digestate (a nutrient-rich slurry). The biogas can be used to generate electricity, replacing fossil fuels and the digestate can be used for fertiliser. Biogas can also be used for cooking (piped to a biogas-compatible cooker) and heating (used in gas geysers and heaters). Biogas deserves far more serious attention than it is receiving, says Gordon Ayres, secretary of the Southern Africa Biogas Industry Association. (Graphic: John McCann/M&G) 'The benefits are huge. A community with limited services could, through some clever investment, clean up a problematic waste, heat itself and create small food gardens which would produce organic food. 'On a larger scale, our municipalities are struggling with organic waste. Landfills are full, and no new licences are being issued; wastewater plants are oversubscribed by a factor of 150% or higher. By running waste through a biogas system, it reduces in volume by up to 97%. 'Farmers crippled by costs of fertiliser, chemically damaged soils and mine-damaged soils can also be remediated with biogas fertiliser. Just the sheer number of jobs that are waiting in the industry is huge; from people building plants, transporting feedstock, involved in gas and gas equipment, farmers who open up unused fields because it becomes profitable to do so and even onwards as biogas is an easy conversion to hydrogen.' Constraints on biogas production arise from a lack of knowledge, skills and resources needed at municipal level to activate this sector, compounded by the silo effect of having various departments dealing with waste (such as environment, planning and energy), said Ayres. Added to this is the problem of resistance from established waste management entities, including patronage networks, that perceive biogas initiatives as a threat to their operations and revenue streams. This was noted in a 2023 report by the There was 'noteworthy opposition from certain sectors of society that oppose any form of thermal waste treatment. Another element relating to the waste hierarchy is that landfilling is seen as the best solution due to the ease of disposal and the cost feasibility with low gate fees,' the report said. Conversely, in the mining industry, despite being traditionally excluded from circular economy considerations because of being an inherently extractive practice, circular economy principles — reducing energy, water and material consumption in the mining process and diversifying minerals via recycling and recovery from waste streams such as tailings — are now in strong focus. The Precinct launched the South African Circular Minerals and Metals Initiative with the support of the department of science and innovation's Circular Innovation South Africa fund last year. To appreciate the importance of circular economies, consider the wastefulness of typically linear production lines in the food manufacturing sector. An example, cited at the sustainability conference by Neissan Besharati, research director of sustainability, ESG, impact and circular economy at the Gordon Institute of Business Science, is the meat industry. 'First, a cow contributes more damaging methane emissions than your car. Then the meat from that cow is often put on planes or shipped and exported to Europe. There, it is made into burgers and sent back to our fast-food outlets here. Throughout this process, there is refrigeration and transport. A lot of energy is used. And that makes you wonder, is that really necessary?' This example illustrates the importance of shortening supply chains by centralising production and processing to regional hubs, which in turn creates local jobs and stimulates small and medium enterprises while building economic self-sufficiency. Waste also becomes a resource locally, for example, scrap metal or used glass can be recaptured and integrated into production. In Gauteng, waste glass collected by local buy-back centres is melted down and reused by regional glass manufacturers such as Consol, preventing that glass from leaking out of the system as landfill or export waste. Waste recycling is particularly important in a circular economy, because here is where carbon-heavy extracting, refining and transporting can be significantly reduced or averted altogether. Recycling aluminium saves up to 95% of the energy needed to produce it from bauxite, for example, and recycling glass saves about 30% of the energy versus using raw sand, soda ash and limestone to create new glass. If one considers just how Ultimately, circular economies are not only about recycling and repurposing, they're about rethinking how economies function. They decouple economic growth from resource use and emissions, making them a powerful tool for deep, long-term climate action. Helen Grange is a writer and sub-editor at Good Governance Africa.
National Post
13-05-2025
- Business
- National Post
Anaergia Reports First Quarter 2025 Financial Results
Article content BURLINGTON, Ontario — Anaergia Inc. ('Anaergia', the 'Company', 'us' or 'our') (TSX: ANRG) (OTCQX: ANRGF), a company that offers integrated waste-to-value solutions to reduce greenhouse gases by cost-effectively turning organic waste into renewable natural gas, fertilizer, and water, announced its financial results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2025. All financial results are reported in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated. 'We are pleased to announce that Anaergia has achieved record Revenue Backlog* during the first quarter of 2025. As of March 31, 2025, our Revenue Backlog has surged by 94.1%, to $200.0 million, compared to $103.1 million at the end of December 2024. The increase in backlog was in the capital sales segment primarily in Italy and North America,' said Assaf Onn, CEO of Anaergia. 'Additionally, we continue to pursue a robust pipeline of other opportunities, some of which we have already been awarded and disclosed since the beginning of the second quarter. We continue to execute our vision of Anaergia 2.0. and since Marny Investment SA's investment in the Company in July 2024, we have taken decisive actions to enhance our financial foundation, refine our strategic direction, and restore investor confidence, leading to significant progress for Anaergia,' added Mr. Onn. Article content Financial highlights: Article content Revenue of $24.9 million for the first quarter of 2025 decreased 0.4%, or $93 thousand, compared to the first quarter of the prior year. The decrease was driven mainly due to lower sales in Italy and Asia Pacific, partially offset by increased sales in North America. Gross profit of $5.4 million for the first quarter of 2025 decreased 16.6%, or $1.1 million, compared to the first quarter of the prior year. The quarter's decrease was mainly driven by reduced gross profit of build, own, operate ('BOO') activities, partially offset by increased gross profit in capital sales. Adjusted EBITDA 1 loss of $3.9 million for the first quarter of 2025 improved by 34.5%, or $2.1 million, from a loss of $6.0 million in the first quarter of the prior year. The improvement in Adjusted EBITDA was primarily driven by decreases in net loss as well as addbacks of Rhode Island Bioenergy Facility ('RIBF') income tax credit transaction costs in the first quarter of fiscal year 2024 that did not recur in the current period. Article content Three months ended: 31-Mar-25 31-Mar-24 % Change (In thousands of Canadian dollars) Revenue 24,876 24,969 (0.4) Gross profit 5,403 6,480 (16.6) Gross profit % 21.7% 26.0% (4.3) percentage points Loss from operations (5,670) (10,210) 44.5 Net loss (5,897) (11,481) 48.6 Adjusted EBITDA 1 (3,940) (6,019) 34.5 Article content Statement of Financial Position 31-Mar-25 31-Dec-24 (In thousands of Canadian dollars) Total Assets 223,030 233,327 Total Liabilities 173,773 180,122 Equity 49,257 53,205 Article content For a more detailed discussion of Anaergia's results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2025, please see the Company's financial statements and management's discussion & analysis, which are available at and on the Company's SEDAR+ page at Article content This press release makes reference to certain non-IFRS™ measures. These measures are not recognized measures under IFRS™ and do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS™ and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Rather, these measures are provided as additional information to complement IFRS™ measures by providing further understanding of our results of operations from management's perspective. Accordingly, these measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our financial information reported under IFRS™. We use non-IFRS™ measures, including 'Adjusted EBITDA', 'EBITDA' and 'Revenue Backlog' to provide investors with supplemental measures. Management also uses non-IFRS™ measures internally in order to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period, prepare annual operating budgets and assess our ability to meet our future debt service, capital expenditure and working capital requirements. Management believes these non-IFRS™ measures are important supplemental measures of operating performance because they eliminate items that have less bearing on operating performance and highlight trends in the core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS™ measures. Management believes such measures are useful as they allow for assessment of our operating performance and financial condition on a basis that is more consistent and comparable between reporting periods. We also believe that securities analysts, investors and other interested parties frequently use non-IFRS™ measures in the evaluation of issuers. Article content Definitions of non-IFRS™ measures used in this press release are provided below. Article content ' Adjusted EBITDA ' is defined as EBITDA adjusted for our normalized proportionate interest in our BOO assets, one-time or non-recurring items, stock-based compensation expense, asset impairment charges and write downs, losses related to equity-accounted investees, significant one-time provisions, foreign exchange gains or losses, restructuring and severance costs, Enterprise Resource Planning customization and configuration costs, litigation and other claims settlements, gains and losses resulting from changes in certain balance sheet valuations (such as derivatives and warrants) and acquisition costs. Article content ' EBITDA ' is defined as earnings before interest expenses, taxes and depreciation and amortization. The most comparable IFRS™ measure for EBITDA is net income (loss). Article content ' Revenue Backlog ' is defined as the balance of unrecognized, undiscounted, consolidated revenues from signed contracts in our capital sales and operation and maintenance service ('O&M')/services segments. For our capital sales contracts, we have modeled only projects that have been contracted. For our O&M/services segment, while most of our in-hand contracts are 5-15 years in tenure, we have conservatively modeled for only 3 years of contracted revenue. Article content See 'Reconciliation of Non-IFRS™ Measures' below for a reconciliation of the foregoing non-IFRS™ measures to their most directly comparable measures calculated in accordance with IFRS™. Article content Conference Call and Webcast Details Article content A conference call to review the Company's financial results will take place at 9:00 a.m. (ET) on Wednesday May 14, 2025. It will be hosted by management of Anaergia. An accompanying slide presentation will be posted to the Investor Relations section of the Company's website shortly before the call. Article content To participate in the call, please sign up using the following pre-registration link to receive details on how to access the conference call: The webcast will be archived and available in the Investor Relations section of our website following the call. Article content About Anaergia Article content Anaergia is a pioneering technology company in the renewable natural gas ('RNG') sector, with over 250 patents dedicated to converting organic waste into sustainable solutions such as RNG, fertilizer, and water. We are committed to addressing a significant source of greenhouse gases ('GHGs') through cost-effective processes. Our proprietary technologies, combined with our engineering expertise and vast experience in facility design, construction, and operation, position Anaergia as a leader in the RNG industry. With a proven track record of delivering hundreds of innovative projects over the past decade, we are well-equipped to tackle today's critical resource recovery challenges through diverse project delivery methods. As one of the few companies worldwide offering an integrated portfolio of end-to-end solutions, we effectively combine solid waste processing, wastewater treatment, organics recovery, high-efficiency anaerobic digestion, and biomethane production. Additionally, we operate RNG facilities owned by both third parties and Anaergia. This comprehensive approach not only reduces environmental impact but also significantly lowers costs associated with waste and wastewater treatment while mitigating GHG emissions. Article content This press release contains 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information may relate to future plans, expectations and intentions, results, levels of activity, performance, goals or achievements, other future events or developments and may include, without limitation, information regarding our financial position, business strategy, growth strategy, budgets, operations, financial results, taxes, plans and objectives. Particularly, information regarding our future results, performance, achievements, prospects or opportunities or the markets in which we operate is forward-looking information. In some cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as 'may', 'will', 'would', 'should', 'could', 'expects', 'plans', 'intends', 'estimate', 'believes', 'likely', 'potential', 'continue', or 'future' or the negative or other variations of these words or other comparable words or phrases. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, intentions, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances contain forward-looking information. Statements containing forward-looking information are not facts but instead represent management's expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events or circumstances. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, among other things, statements relating to financial condition and results of operations; Company's strategic growth plan; and statements regarding the Company's Revenue Backlog and potential future sales. Article content Forward-looking information is necessarily based on a number of opinions, assumptions and estimates that we considered appropriate and reasonable as of the date such statements were made. It is also subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to the risk factors described in the Company's annual information form and management's discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2024. Certain assumptions in respect of our ability to execute on our expansion plans; our ability to obtain or maintain existing financing on acceptable terms; and our ability of realizing the anticipated benefits of such are material factors underlying forward looking information and management's expectations. Article content The purpose of the forward-looking statements in this press release is to provide the reader with a description of management's current expectations regarding the Company's financial performance and may not be appropriate for other purposes. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information, which speaks only to opinions, estimates and assumptions as of the date made. Furthermore, unless otherwise stated, the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and we have no intention and undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Article content * Using a new conservative definition of Revenue Backlog, first introduced with fiscal 2024 year end results. As defined under 'Non-International Financial Reporting Standards ('IFRS'™) Accounting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ('IASB')'. 1 'Adjusted EBITDA' is a non-IFRS™ measure. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
