Most commonly, biogas systems use their gas to either generate electricity, produce heat, or remove the carbon dioxide to create a purer methane, aka renewable natural gas/RNG/biomethane (graph below).
In 2019, over 90% of biogas capture systems produced power (electricity and/or heat), and 8% produced RNG. Since then, 90+% of new systems constructed have been designed to produce RNG, and some power systems have been converted to RNG. Today, nearly one-quarter (23%) 
of all biogas capture systems make RNG.
Looking at the new systems in 2024, only seven of 125 new systems commissioned use their biogas to produce electricity or heat; these include three at WRRFs, two at Food Waste facilities, two on farms and none at all at landfills. The remaining 118 biogas capture systems opened in 2024 are all dedicated to RNG production.
In terms of biogas volume, the shift is even more striking (graph below). In 2019, just 17% of biogas captured was converted to RNG, but by the end of 2024 this proportion rose to 40%. This shift primarily happened due to changes in two sectors, agriculture and landfill. In both, new biogas systems were built to produce RNG and existing power systems were converted to produce RNG instead due to the more favorable market conditions for RNG during this time.
As a primary end-use, the amount of biogas flared is remains minuscule at 1%. Flaring is generally exclusive of smaller or older wastewater facilities that have decided to stop investing in their biogas system. The primary job of these wastewater facilities is not to make biogas, but to convert sewage into clean water to put back into our waterways. The biogas system reduces the amount of sludge they have to handle and the biogas production is often considered a byproduct. Better use of this captured biogas, while a small volume, remains an opportunity for improvement.
Looking into the future, according to recent ABC estimates, a full build-out of the U.S. biogas industry could result in the development of over 17,000 new biogas capture systems, offering huge benefits for energy security, economic growth and sustainability. If all this additional capacity were assigned to power production, potential output could increase to 255.3 billion kWh, equivalent to the annual electricity usage of 23.7 million homes. Alternatively, if all the additional biogas captured were assigned to RNG production, current output of 159 million MMBtu could be increased to 2.1 billion MMBtu, meeting the total energy consumption of 27.4 million homes.
For further details of U.S. biogas industry potential, visit the ABC website where the 2025 State Profiles provide estimates of the capacity for new biogas facilities and production, as well as a breakdown of the resulting economic, climate and recycling benefits, for all 50 states: https://americanbiogascouncil.org/resources/state-profiles/.
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Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for next month’s data from ABC’s Data Analysis Team, led by Ian Taylor, ABC Data & Analysis Manager.
About the ABC’s Biogas Projects Database
The ABC’s Biogas Projects Database is the most comprehensive database of U.S. biogas projects. All information at the facility level is confidential, so data is only released in the form of aggregated totals which protects project-level confidentiality. To help improve this resource for the industry, please ensure your project details are up to date by contacting Ian Taylor, ABC Data & Analysis Manager at ian@americanbiogascouncil.org