Ridge Partners LLC develops green energy projects in the Caribbean and in Latin America

Modern western living standards create a large amount of waste. Most of it is in the form of household solid refuse made up of plastic from beverage and food containers, paper and cardboard, organic material, metal, glass, and wood. This creates the need for large landfills where solid waste can be disposed of. Landfill space is relatively hard to come by in the modern world and nowhere is this problem felt more than the Islands in the Caribbean which have limited land to support their growing populations.

Energy in the form of electricity or diesel fuel is a necessary to enhance the quality of life as well as power the economies of nations. Energy is in short supply in many Caribbean and Latin American Countries. Much of the electricity is generated through coal plants, diesel gen sets and other older dirtier technologies and typically all diesel fuel is imported.  

Ridge Partners LLC will solve three problems that all small countries face. Our projects will reduce the amount of municipal waste going to a landfill, generate electricity or create fuel for transportation and create new jobs for the good of the country.

 

 

Dominican Republic
Waste to Energy

Ridge Partners LLC is developing three projects in the area of the Dominican Republic known as the Northwest Line (Linea Noroeste) The location is in the northwestern section of the Dominican Republic, In an area which runs from Santiago to Manzanillo near the NW border with Haiti. the three projects will serve 25 cities and towns all of which have no organized municipal solid waste landfills, collection programs or recycling programs. These communities currently have informal local dumps where citizens dump their garbage. When the garbage piles get too large they are generally pushed up with a bulldozer and set on fire.

Ridge Partners LLC will create an orderly system which will eliminate 85% of the municipal solid waste and turn it into diesel fuel. The process is carbon negative and works as follows.

Ridge Partners process is two phased:

  • Convert municipal solid waste into Refuse Derived Fuel Pellets (RDF)

  • Convert the RDF into Renewable synthetic diesel fuel

Processing the Municipal Solid Waste into RDF consists of the following steps:

  • Sort & Recycle

    • Open all bags and containers

    • Separate recyclable plastics

    • Separate ceramics and glass

    • Separate recyclable metals

    • Separate brick, rocks, sand and cement

  • Shredding and size reduction of MSW stream

  • Dry MSW stream

  • Pelletize MSW into inert, odorless product RDF

Converting RDF to Diesel Fuel

  • Ultra high temperature gasification

  • Liquification

  • Distillation and filtering of diesel fuel

Ridge Partners RDF to fuel process produces the following products:

  • ASTM 975 Diesel Fuel

  • Biochar

  • Wood Vinegar

  • Water

Biochar is similar to activated charcoal but has a lower density and is used as:

  • Soil amendment which improves plant health and reduces water requirements for the plant

  • Can be used as a feed supplement for cattle

  • Fuel similar to charcoal

Wood Vinegar is also called Pyroligneous Acid and is used in agriculture as:

  • Growth enhancement

  • Pesticide

  • Fungicide

The diesel produced is synthetic since it is not processed from petroleum out of the ground. It is renewable because there is not a finite source from which it is produced and the fuel qualifies as R100 renewable fuel as defined by the EPA 40 CFR, Part 79 and IRS Part 637.

Ridge Partners LLC is utilizing proven technology and equipment that was developed and is produced in the United states.

Additional elements of the project:

•   Dominican Law 57-07 Renewable Energy Law: The country is mandated to give a priority for the purchase of energy from renewable energy projects. MSW has been formally designated as a renewable feedstock.

•   Concessionary Transaction: The concessionary agreement gives the project various tax incentives as agreed with the National Energy Commission.

•   Corporation Status: The project is a Dominican corporation that enjoys the same legal protection as a Dominican citizen.

•   Efficacy of Technologies: Technologies are already deployed at a commercial scale in the US and Europe.  All fall within EPA/EU guidelines with a technology rider which covers any unforeseen issues with the process.

•   Marketability of Synthetic Diesel: 100% of current diesel in the country is imported. This is the first large-scale domestic diesel produced in the history of the country.

•   Environmental Impact: The project is beneficial due to the reduction of methane and other GHGs emitted from the landfill, reduced volume of organic waste, reduced volume of non-biodegradable waste, reduced leachate from the landfill.

·      Political & Credit Strength:  The Dominican Republic enjoys a stable government with a well-established banking and court systems.  Credit enhancements such as political risk insurance and a technology wrap will be arranged as required.

The opportunities in the Caribbean are significant.  Ridge has received supportive audiences from other Caribbean nations who share a similar plight. Across the island nations, each region has large open air landfills, low cost of labor, high unemployment, very limited land for waste dump/landfill operations, and expensive imported energy, fuels and land prices.  These other island projects are most likely to follow the Dominican Republic’s model.  Ridge is uniquely positioned to take advantage of these opportunities with boots on ground, significant Caribbean experience and a large compilation of Caribbean operatives.