Celebrating LPG Day: building a greener future with Renewable & Recycled Carbon DME

The LPG Day celebrates the benefits of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and its pivotal role in powering millions of homes, businesses, communities and industries in areas off the gas grid globally. 

LPG is a  key fuel for the energy transition, an alternative to high-carbon fossil fuels such as oil and coal, that comes in two forms propane (C 3 H 8 ) and butane (C 4 H10). It is a clean-burning, portable energy source that can reach where other energies cannot. 

Over 200m tonnes of LPG are used for energy purposes each year, and while LPG plays a key role both today and tomorrow, renewable liquid gases, such as DME and renewable LPG, will be critical to reduce carbon emissions further. 

Renewable & Recycled Carbon DME 

Renewable & Recycled Carbon DME is a liquid gas chemically similar to LPG, it can be blended with it or used on its own. It is a safe, clean-burning, sustainable fuel supporting the decarbonisation of off-grid energy. It can be made from various feedstocks, such as waste, biomass or biogas, and can reduce up to 85% emissions compared to oil and diesel. It can also achieve over 100% emissions savings when carbon capture is used. 

Blending DME with LPG can significantly contribute to reducing the environmental impact and meeting the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to achieve net zero by 2050 as part of the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5°C. 

Dimeta was established in February 2022 to accelerate the production and use of renewable & recycled carbon DME. Dimeta has announced the location of its first commercial plant in Teesside, the UK, which will be operational in 2025. 

Benefits of DME 

Sustainable solution: DME made from sustainable feedstocks, such as wastes, have a low greenhouse gas footprint, reducing emissions by up to 85% compared to fossil fuels. Depending on the feedstock and production process used, DME can even have negative greenhouse gas emissions, supporting a transition towards a greener future. 

Adaptability: As it is chemically similar, DME can be blended with LPG in existing supply chains, providing immediate emissions reduction for the consumer and significantly contribute to propane’s de-fossilization. Global work is underway to agree this initial blend ratio – minimizing disruption and maximizing use of existing infrastructure. 

Safe solution: Due to its chemical properties, DME is a fuel that is safe to handle compared to other fuels. DME has been used for decades in the industrial sector and is a common product in aerosols used by individuals on a daily basis across the world. 

Uses of DME 

DME can be applied across different industries and sectors, some of the main sectors it can support are: 

Domestic: Over a billion people live in areas not connected to main gas, thus are “off-grid”. These homes are often located in remote areas and rely heavily on high-carbon fuels for daily activities and needs such as cooking, heating or portable power. Switching these customers onto LPG and DME, followed by increasing amounts of renewable LPG, is a sustainable solution supporting the just transition to net zero. 

Industrial & Commercial: Countless rural off-grid businesses and industrial buildings and processes worldwide rely on LPG as an essential energy source for their operations. LPG is integral to many industries, from the hospitality and leisure sector to retail, warehousing, manufacturing, transport and agriculture. By blending DME with LPG or switching oil users onto 100% renewable liquid gas, businesses can significantly reduce their greenhouse footprint, especially in areas with stringent regulations. 

Transport: Over 29 million vehicles worldwide use Autogas as the primary fuel. Vehicles using Autogas, such as taxis, vans, cars, trucks or forklifts, can use a blend of DME to support the decarbonisation of the transport sector. This is already being done in the United States. 

Focusing on innovation and sustainability, Dimeta drives positive change towards a greener planet. With the production of renewable & recycled carbon DME. Dimeta aims to accelerate the decarbonisation of the LPG industry with its goal of 300,000 tonnes of sustainable DME production capacity by 2027 and contribute to increasing access to affordable, reliable and sustainable energy to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7) by 2030.