Unconventional Gas Solutions LLC (UGS) Launches New Renewable Fuels Processing Product Line, Makes Key Additions to Their Executive Team, Acquires a New Facility & Announces Business Wins

UGS, a leader in gas processing technologies, today announced several important milestones.

Launch of Verdant Process Systems

Unconventional Gas Solutions LLC has launched a new line of process solutions for renewable natural gas (RNG), renewable hydrogen production and hydrogen recovery from industrial processes. Verdant Process Systems^TM leverages the gas separations expertise of the UGS team and builds on their experience designing and fabricating industry-leading gas processing systems for leading RNG and hydrogen companies.

Using UGS’ extensive experience in process design and packaging gained in over a century of collective experience in the harshest environments and solving the toughest separations challenges, the Verdant Process Systems design approach is based on technology selection and process design to optimize cost and carbon intensity as well as provide industry-leading methane emissions control across the system.

Key Additions

The launch of Verdant Process Systems comes as the company hires several new executives, all of whom join CEO George Paul as partners in the company. Chet Benham joins UGS as President. Chet was formerly CEO of Air Liquide Advanced Technologies US LLC where he was instrumental in the development of their RNG and membrane businesses including acquisition and greenfield development of 4 RNG projects and dozens of RNG equipment packages. He also supervised the Natural Gas Processing Business Unit where the team delivered one of the largest gas processing packages on a Floating, Production, Storage & Offloading (FPSO) vessel in the Brazilian Pre-Salt region. The project used the first of its kind all membrane solution for treating CO₂ and H₂S.

Bill Keller joins UGS as Vice President of Corporate Development and will drive commercial growth and business maturity. A former United States Marine Corps officer and pilot, Bill has over 14 years of wide-ranging experience in gases from commissioning and maintaining Air Liquide’s first hydrogen stations in the US, to executive management of global sales and manufacturing for Air Liquide’s membrane business. At Air Liquide, he was responsible for delivering the world’s largest onshore membrane-based gas processing plant. Prior to UGS, Bill served as Director of RNG Sales & Marketing for Archaea Energy.

Dr. Ben Bikson joins UGS as Chief Technology Officer overseeing all R&D and technology development. Ben was formerly Deputy Vice President of Air Liquide Advanced Separations. Prior to that, he served as Founder & President of PoroGen LLC, a leading gas separation membrane technology company, which was acquired by Air Liquide in 2015. He also was founder & CEO of Innovative Membrane Systems, Praxair’s membrane division, that was also acquired by Air Liquide in 2004. Dr. Bikson holds nearly a hundred patents related to membrane technology and its application.

New Engineering, Fabrication & Assembly Facility

UGS also announces a contract to purchase a 70,000 square foot Engineering, Fabrication & Assembly facility in Houston. The new, multi-building facility will house all of UGS’ fabrication and assembly activities. The facility will capture significant synergies with the supply chains available in the Houston area as well as the region’s growing renewable energy ecosystem. The new facility will complement the company’s Houston headquarters, the Business Development office in Wilmington, Delaware, and its R&D facility in Boston.

New Business

Verdant Process Systems is starting fast as UGS has been selected as the technology provider for 8 new projects for the Verdant Process Systems “flange-to-flange” turnkey biogas upgrading systems for the production of RNG. These projects, with leading developers like Novilla RNG, will come online over the next 2 years and will be supplied from UGS’ new assembly & fabrication facility in Houston.

Mark Hill, Co-CEO of Novilla commented, “With a staff that has helped launch eight operational dairy RNG projects, Novilla RNG understands the importance of straight-forward gas upgrading systems, the ability to remove a wide array of contaminants, and working with a company that has extensive experience producing RNG upgrading systems that are in service today. That’s why we are excited to be working with UGS on dairy RNG projects in the Midwest US that will be showcasing what both teams are capable of doing.”

“We see tremendous growth in renewable fuels projects,” says UGS CEO George Paul. “As the energy transition accelerates, UGS is uniquely suited to build on our experience in both RNG and traditional energy sectors to bring something new and exciting to the RNG and hydrogen space.”

Said Benham, the company’s new president, “The group of engineers, scientists, project professionals and executives we have assembled is truly second to none. UGS is now poised to provide great technology solutions across the energy transition and beyond.”

About Unconventional Gas Solutions

UGS was founded in 2013 and started as the engineering, assembly, and fabrication sister company of PoroGen LLC, a leader in membrane technology that was acquired by Air Liquide in 2015. Today, UGS supplies industry-leading gas separation technologies across a wide spectrum of industries; from conventional gas processing to renewable gas upgrading and such highly complex technologies as helium recovery and hydrogen production. UGS has world-class competencies in membrane separation, adsorption technologies, cryogenics, steam methane reforming and packaging including several important proprietary technologies.

The company is based in Houston, Texas with executive offices in Wilmington, Delaware and international sales offices in Tel Aviv, the United Arab Emirates and Kula Lumpur, Malaysia. UGS is a member of the Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas, the American, Canadian and European Biogas Councils, as well as the Compressed Gas Association, the Ammonia Energy Association, and the American Gas Association. An active participant in the renewable energy ecosystem in Houston, Boston, and Philadelphia, UGS is a member of the Northeast Clean Energy Council and the Renewable Energy Alliance of Houston. To learn more about UGS, please visit https://ugs.solutions/ or come see us at the RNG Works Conference in Nashville at booth 607.

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