Aemetis, Inc. has received $6 million in cash proceeds from the sale of $7.7 million in Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) investment tax credits generated by its dairy biogas digester projects. The company sold the tax credits to a corporate purchaser as part of a previously arranged multi-closing purchase arrangement. This transaction follows a previous sale last month where the company received $11 million from tax credit sales, demonstrating ongoing financial momentum for the company's renewable energy initiatives.
The tax credits were generated from investments in dairy biogas digesters constructed and placed in service by Aemetis in the fourth quarter of 2024. Eric McAfee, Chairman and CEO of Aemetis, emphasized the significance of these proceeds in funding domestic energy production and reducing dependence on imported crude oil. The company anticipates additional tax credit sales from biogas digester and pipeline projects currently under construction, expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2025.
Aemetis operates an extensive biogas infrastructure, including twelve dairy digesters, 36 miles of biogas pipeline, a central biogas to renewable natural gas (RNG) production facility, and a utility gas pipeline interconnection. The company's Keyes ethanol plant supports approximately 80 local dairies by supplying two million pounds of animal feed daily, creating a circular agricultural economy. The environmental impact of the Aemetis Biogas project is substantial, as approximately 25% of methane emissions in California come from dairy waste lagoons without methane capture systems.
When fully operational, the project aims to capture methane from over 150,000 dairy cows, producing 1,650,000 MMBtu of renewable natural gas annually. The project is projected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to approximately 6.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide over a decade, representing a significant contribution to environmental sustainability and clean energy production. This development matters because it demonstrates how federal policy incentives like the Inflation Reduction Act are accelerating private investment in renewable energy infrastructure that addresses both energy security and climate change simultaneously.
