Sidley is representing Cresta Fund Management and Silverpeak Energy Partners in its agreement with San Joaquin Renewables (SJR) to invest up to US$165 million to develop and construct a biomass-to-renewable natural gas (RNG) project near McFarland, California. Frontline BioEnergy, a leading provider of waste and biomass gasification solutions, is developing the project, which will take orchard residuals and shells from San Joaquin Valley farms and convert them into RNG that will be sold as transportation fuel. The project will also sequester carbon dioxide in an EPA Class VI sequestration well located on the project site. When completed, SJR's RNG facility will replace the current practice of open burning of agricultural waste with an enclosed system that will produce a non-fossil form of natural gas, capture and store carbon dioxide, and serve as a substitute to diesel; thereby reducing overall greenhouse gas emissions.
The Sidley team was led by partners Holt Foster and Marc Rose, and associate Jeremy Pettit, with support from partners Zack Pullin and Eric Winwood, counsel Lauren Grau, and associates Bekah Maloney and Robert Uhl. The team also included partners Bill Howell, Irv Rotter, and Robert Stephens, counsel Jim Weiss, and associates Marian Fielding and Julia Sprangers. Environmental regulatory support was provided by partners Heather Palmer and Maureen Gorsen and associate Allen Braddock.