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Will County committee approves $740,000 compressor purchase for RNG plant, hears FY2025 operations and budget update
Summary
The county's Landfill Committee received an RNG plant operations report (strong uptime and mixed fiscal results) and voted to authorize purchasing a fourth feed compressor (vendor quote $740,000) to increase uptime; installation costs will be budgeted in 2027 and the purchase will be routed through the county executive/board agenda.
The Will County Landfill Committee on Feb. 10 heard an operations and finance update for the county's renewable natural gas (RNG) facility and approved moving forward on buying a fourth feed compressor to improve plant uptime.
Greg Converter, the RNG project manager, reported production and reliability improvements for the end of fiscal 2025, citing monthly outputs near 70,000–74,000 MBtus and a year‑to‑date average uptime of about 90%. "2025 fiscal year, we're about 90, which is, you know, a pretty good number," Converter said. He also said the plant has added moisture‑monitoring equipment to help maintain compliant gas delivery.
On finances, Converter told the committee that total expenses for the year were about $7,300,000 and total revenue about $11.3 million, producing roughly $4.0 million in operating income before debt service. "Take into account debt service, our net income with that service was about 610,000 in the red," he said.
Staff presented a supplier quote of approximately $740,000 for a fourth feed compressor, citing engineering, delivery and sole‑source constraints because the plant is designed for that compressor type. The current RNG budget includes $500,000 in building expense and $500,000 in machinery/equipment (total $1,000,000); $128,000 of that is already encumbered for a bare‑shaft spare, leaving roughly $870,000 available. Committing the $740,000 purchase would leave about $130,000 in those accounts; staff proposed bringing a resolution to the March finance committee to move roughly $100,000 from contingency back into machinery if needed.
The committee approved a motion to proceed with the purchase (Motion by "Nukwis", seconded); a roll‑call vote was recorded with members responding Yes (Vicky, Brooks, Pollack, Newquist, Prato, Axley) and the chair announced the motion carried. Chair and staff noted the purchase will need to be included on the county executive and county board agenda for amendment or final approval.
Committee members also discussed separate equipment needs (a man lift priced around $90,000 and a telehandler around $252,000). Staff recommended pausing those buys until the fiscal picture is clearer; the committee discussed current lease costs (~$3,000 per month) and potential payback if purchased.
What’s next: Staff will prepare the necessary procurement documents and a finance‑committee resolution if transfers are needed; the compressor's manufacturing lead time was estimated at 36–40 weeks, putting anticipated delivery in the October–November window if ordered now.
