Our Energy Future is in the Rural Methane Economy

April 1st 2021

Humanity’s greatest challenge, global warming, is the defining problem of our world today and we must act quickly in order to sustain our planet. It’s a challenge that we should not underestimate the difficulty, not ignore the devastating consequences.

One of the greatest issues countries face is promoting environmental and CO2 reduction programs in regional areas across the world. High levels of vehicle usage and intensive agriculture all add up to a disproportionate share of CO2 emissions per population.

The major causes of Global Warming directly related to regional and rural areas in many countries is methane production from farms, primarily cattle. Globally, livestock produce 7.1 gigatons of CO2 annually or 14.5% of greenhouse gases, and is therefore a major target for CO2 reduction.

While recognizing this huge challenge, we like to see things differently, and it is why we saw an opportunity to start Rural Methane Ltd. 

Here’s a summary of our business model: The primary cause of livestock emissions is methane, a resource that once captured, is useful for agricultural advancement. Exploiting methane as a resource allows farms and rural communities to prosper, and create what we call the “Circular Energy Economy” within the farm itself.

So how does it work? Working with our friends at Cattle ContraptionsTM, a hands on agriculture Research and Development company, we’ve developed and patented a device that, when attached to cattle, can harvest this methane resource – the first of its kind in the world. The system, primarily designed with the most humane attachment methods in mind, uses revolutionary technology to exploit a scarce resource and generate economic return.   

In technical detail, the main body of the device, fashioned from aluminum and titanium for strength and light weight, is mounted on the animal’s back and features a collection tank that can be compressed up to 200 psi. The compressor is powered by a 100W solar PV panel that is integrated on the top of the machine. From there, a hose and collection device are attached to the rear of the cow, fitted under the tail and secured for maximum comfort.

To make sure only methane is collected, we have also patented the Crapper FlapperTM, which allows the solid waste to fall through the flap, while a gentle vacuum, generated by the reverse cycle compressor, ensures methane can be stored “on cow” for collection at a future point.

The tanks have enough capacity to last up to two days in general use, while our long range model, suitable for more remote broad acre farms and ranches, can last up to 5 days. For feed lots a direct rump to main central tank hookup can also be supported, which saves weight and cost.

To enhance the well being of all the cattle, the optionally available Rump MasseurTM, increases the cow’s ability to relax, as well as tenderizing the steak to optimum levels for later human consumption.

Once the methane is collected in a central location on the farm, there are many on site uses available to the farmer. We advocate converting methane to hydrogen using steam reforming, with most farms having a ready access to a nearby water supply for the process. From there, hydrogen can be used to power fuel cell farm vehicles and act as a fuel for home heating and energy systems. 

Of course, hydrogen through a fuel call can also create electricity that can be returned to the grid/ This enables rural grids, which are generally more vulnerable to outages, to increase stability and resiliency. We call the process Cow to Grid, or C2G, our we believe that such a system is a world first.

Even more exciting, Rural Methane’s new “Cow F2F” (Cow Flatulence to Fertilizer) system allows hydrogen to be converted to ammonia and then into fertilizer, a key ingredient for pasture growth. This creates a true circular energy AND agriculture system for all farms and ranches.

While this system is still at early prototype stage, we see initial costs for a typical farm today with 500 head of cattle from around $10 million for the complete circular farm economy system. While this is not unreasonable for such an environmentally significant project, our aim is to reduce costs to under $1 million per farm by 2040, with a targeted $1/kg hydrogen set for 2060.  Operating expenses on the machines are also forecast to drop from around $1 million per year today to under $200,000 per year by 2040.

To bridge the gap in costs between now and 2040, we are asking the federal government to support our initiative with a grant of $500 million per year to support on going trials and widespread roll out. This project is critical to assist in transitioning rural communities into the climate friendly economy, and will help achieve our Paris Accord CO2 obligations by 2030.

The economics of such a system, once the initial technology cost burden is resolved, are impressive.  We are forecasting that each cow will produce enough methane for 1 kg of hydrogen per week, which on a farm of 500 cattle, could be more than enough to act as a very significant new revenue stream, or, alternatively, used to offset operating expenses on fuel cell tractors and harvesters. Not only that, the reduction of diesel particulate emissions increases the health and well being of the cattle, greatly improving meat flavour, and reducing potential chemical transmission to humans.

As this hydrogen and methane system generally starts with cattle being fed green grass on the front end, and after ruminant processing, comes out the other end brown, we call this type green brown hydrogen to separate it from more traditional types of green hydrogen and brown hydrogen production.

One of the biggest developments of this system is harvesting and managing the data collected for new insights for the farming community. The system uses GPS to track the cow’s movements across the farm, notes which other cattle are in close proximity and monitors regular health and vitals. This enables any emergencies to be quickly communicated to both the farmer and local vet. Using Machine Learning and AI, this data can be used to track methane production, determine seasonal variation and eating consumption patterns.

The GPS system also notes the location of any bowel movements, allowing stock hands to most effectively locate and spread the solid brown fertilizer evenly across the grazing area, significantly increasing efficiency.

Such data also monitors the timing when cows come on heat. This allows farmers to remove the equipment prior to letting the bulls in for any cow hanky-panky.  This ensures equipment damage is kept to a minimum and creates an opportunity for servicing to occur in a convenient and timely manner.

Our service contract, based on a Software as a Service Cloud based platform, monitors the equipment in real time and supports the Data as a Service platform mentioned above. The system can also operate on the Edge, perfect for when cell and GPS reception become more difficult in regional areas; while OTA updates enable the latest firmware upgrades to be available for all cows instantaneously.

So where to from here? To support such a renewable energy breakthrough and economic opportunity for regional and rural communities, Rural Methane Ltd will be fundraising via a reverse merger SPAC IPO. With our partners at Bull Market Acquisition Corp (trading with stock ticker BSHT), the new company will issue 100 million listed shares at $15 each, enabling a market cap of over $1.5 billion – one of the first enviro agri-tech companies to achieve “unicorn” (or unicow) status. This merger will guarantee us the capital to make cattle flatulence a huge economic resource and tackle the massive issue of Anthropological Global Warming head on, one cow at a time.

How can you help? The first way to show your support is via our upcoming inaugural “Fart for Rural Communities” Day. You can show your support by inviting your local Member of Parliament, Senator or state politician to help us lobby for the annual $500 million annual support we need to help make Rural Methane energy systems a reality.  We will be giving out cans of beans to help make the day a true success.

The second way is to invest in Rural Methane Ltd shares at the time of the upcoming IPO.  Not only is there significant potential to benefit financially, your investment in such a green chip ESG stock will give you the knowledge that you are investing in our planet as well.

Join us in the climate struggle and help us capture this vital resource for the benefit of not only the children in rural communities but all global citizens as a whole. Pffffffft.

James Carter is Principal Consultant of Vision Mobility, a Toronto based consultancy that specializes in helping Startups, Government, Industry Associations and established companies better understand New Mobility and how to pivot towards new opportunities. James has over 20 years automotive experience, including 19 years with Toyota in Australia, Japan and North America. He was also born and raised into 7 generations of cattle farmers in rural Australia, but has no idea if cows actually fart in real life.