What Ridge Partners does

Ridge Partners LLC is a privately-held infrastructure development firm founded in 1990 and domiciled in Burr Ridge, Illinois. The company develops waste-to-energy projects in Latin America and the Caribbean, with its flagship Jaibon Project in the Dominican Republic operated through a jointly-controlled special purpose vehicle, Ridge Partners Linea Noroeste SA (RPLN), co-developed with Energy3 International LLC. The company's core offering is a two-phase municipal solid waste (MSW) to synthetic renewable diesel conversion process: phase one converts MSW into Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) pellets through sorting, shredding, drying, and pelletizing; phase two uses ultra-high temperature gasification, liquefaction, and distillation to produce synthetic diesel meeting ASTM D-975 specifications, EPA CFR Part 79 R100 fuel standards, and IRS Part 637 renewable diesel classification, alongside biochar and wood vinegar byproducts.

The Jaibon facility is engineered to process over 1,000 tons of MSW per day from 26 communities in the Dominican Republic's Linea Noroeste region and produce approximately 23.4 million gallons of synthetic diesel annually, 48,660 tons of biochar for agricultural soil remediation, and 4.7 million gallons of wood vinegar (pyroligneous acid) annually. The project operates under a 25-year definitive concession granted by the Dominican National Energy Commission in April 2021 and signed in November 2021, with a $300 million capital investment and an EPC partnership with a world-renowned contractor experienced in 150+ countries. Ridge Partners' go-to-market is a B2G enterprise field-sales model targeting national and municipal governments facing MSW crises and diesel import dependency, supplemented by export channels (UK mentioned) and a parallel Jamaica project in earlier-stage development.

The business model relies on transaction-fee revenue from synthetic diesel fuel sales and byproduct sales, with regulatory exclusivity providing a long-duration revenue base. The company is currently pre-revenue at the project level, with the Jaibon facility breaking ground in June 2022. Management is led by Managing Partner/CEO Thomas J. Kluber, COO Scott H. Smith, CFO Michael J. Losch, and General Partners Kevin Allodi, J. Steve Lovell, and James D. Kramer. No institutional venture or private equity investment has been disclosed in the public materials, and the firm operates without a parent company.

Name

Ridge Partners

Legal name

Ridge Partners LLC

Website

https://ridgepartnersllc.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ridge Partners LLC is a privately-held infrastructure developer that converts municipal solid waste into ASTM D-975 synthetic renewable diesel and agricultural byproducts. Its flagship Jaibon Project in the Dominican Republic operates under a 25-year government concession and is co-developed with Energy3 International LLC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Renewable Fuel Production

NAICS

Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing (3241), Petroleum Refineries (32411)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953), Industrial Organic Chemicals (2860)

akta.pro primary industry

Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) Production & Combustion (C&D/MSW-derived) (EUAAAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) Production & Co-processing (Cement Kilns/Industrial Furnaces) (EUAIACAH)

Keywords

• Waste-to-energy conversion
• Renewable diesel production
• Municipal solid waste processing
• Synthetic fuel manufacturing
• Green energy infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Santo Domingo

HQ country

Dominican Republic

HQ region

Latin America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Synthetic Diesel Fuel Sales: The company generates primary revenue from producing and selling renewable synthetic diesel fuel produced from municipal solid waste. Fuel specifications meet ASTM D-975 and qualify as Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) and R100 renewable fuel. The Jaibon project alone will produce approximately 1,950,354 gallons of fuel per month (23.4 million gallons annually). Revenue comes from both domestic sales and export markets (UK mentioned).
2. Byproduct Sales (Biochar and Wood Vinegar): Secondary revenue streams from sale of co-products: biochar (48,660 tons annually for agricultural soil remediation) and wood vinegar/pyroligneous acid (4.7 million gallons annually for agricultural use as growth enhancement, pesticide, and fungicide).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ridge Partners develops and operates municipal solid waste-to-renewable synthetic diesel conversion facilities in Latin America and the Caribbean. Its two-phase process converts unsorted MSW into Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) pellets and then gasifies them into ASTM D-975 spec synthetic diesel fuel, plus biochar and wood vinegar co-products. Revenue is generated by selling these manufactured fuel and agricultural products under long-term government concessions and through export markets.

Product overview

Ridge Partners operates a unified waste-to-fuel conversion system consisting of the Jaibon Project facility in the Dominican Republic. The process converts municipal solid waste (MSW) into three main outputs: synthetic renewable diesel fuel meeting ASTM 975 specifications, biochar for agricultural soil remediation, and wood vinegar for agricultural applications. The two-phase process first transforms MSW into Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) pellets, then gasifies the RDF into synthetic diesel and byproducts. RPLN (Ridge Partners Linea Noroeste SA) serves as the operating company and special purpose vehicle for these projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Jaibon Project The Jaibon Project is Ridge Partners' flagship waste-to-energy facility located in the Dominican Republic, designed to convert over 1,000 tons of municipal solid waste per day into 23.4 million gallons of D-975 spec diesel fuel, 48,660 tons of biochar for agricultural soil remediation, and 4.7 million gallons of wood vinegar (pyroligneous acid), creating 220 new jobs. It operates under a 25-year government concession with the Dominican National Energy Commission.
• Synthetic Renewable Diesel Fuel

Quantifiable outcome

• 85% of MSW currently entering open air dumps can be eliminated through processing into diesel fuel
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Energy3 International LLCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-developer and shareholder of Ridge Partners Linea Noroeste SA (RPLN), the operating company and SPV that owns the Jaibon Project. RPLN is co-developed by Ridge Partners LLC and Energy3 International LLC.
• EPC Contractor (World-Renowned)coreTechnology or IntegrationWorld-renowned EPC contractor for design, building, financing and operating infrastructure for governments, businesses and organizations in more than 150 countries. Has oil and gas division with unit specializing in renewable, clean energy projects. Fulfills entire spectrum of design, build, and operation for various projects.
• Technology Partners (PPI and others)coreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology partners build and deliver material recycling facilities and gasifiers certified to US standards. Partners include PPI (gasification technology), AON, ARGO, BHS, Loesche, Andritz, and APTIM. Rockwood Facility in Ozone TN, owned and operated by PPI, used for testing. Successfully completed full-scale testing on May 9, 2019 with 2000 lbs MSW pellets processed.
• Dominican Government (National Energy Commission)coreOthersGranted provisional concession March 19, 2019 for analysis and studies. Granted definitive concession April 22, 2021 via resolution CNE-CD0003-2021. Signed 25-year definitive concession contract November 17, 2021. Project operates under Dominican Law 64-00 (General Law of Environment and Natural Resources) and Law 57-07 (Renewable Energy Law).
• Cadel Inc.minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEnvironmental consultant to the project. President Cesar Pena represented Cadel Inc. at the first public meeting in Cruces de Guayacanes.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Aemetis: US-based renewable diesel and advanced biofuels producer operating at commercial scale. Comparable end-product (renewable diesel meeting ASTM D-975-like specs) though uses conventional HEFA pathway rather than MSW gasification.
• Casella Waste Systems: US-based integrated solid waste management company with recycling, organics, and disposal services plus renewable natural gas production. Comparable waste-management and waste-to-energy themes though operates as a US regional incumbent.
• Clean Energy Fuels: US-based renewable natural gas and waste-to-fuels company. Comparable focus on monetising waste-derived renewable fuels, though primarily methane-based RNG vs gasification-to-diesel.

Emerging players

• Velocys: UK/US company developing synthetic crude and renewable jet/diesel from waste and biomass feedstocks via Fischer-Tropsch. Comparable gasification-to-liquids technology pathway and renewable diesel output.
• Brightmark Energy: US-based waste-to-energy developer with projects converting MSW and plastics to renewable natural gas and other fuels. Comparable feedstock (MSW), developer profile, and project-development stage.
• Plastic Energy: UK-based company converting plastic waste into hydrocarbon feedstock for fuels. Comparable technology pathway (waste-to-fuels via thermal conversion) and small-scale commercial deployment profile.
• LanzaTech: US/New Zealand-based gas fermentation company converting waste gases and biomass into fuels. Comparable end-product (renewable diesel/jet) and waste-based feedstock approach, though via different conversion pathway (biocatalysis vs thermal gasification).

Regional players

• BURN Manufacturing: Kenya-based company developing waste-to-energy cooking fuel solutions for low-income countries. Comparable business model addressing emerging-market waste and energy constraints, though smaller-scale and different end product (cooking fuel vs diesel).

Direct peers

• Enerkem: Canadian company that converts MSW and other residual waste into biofuels and renewable chemicals via gasification. Closely comparable technology pathway and waste-based feedstock focus, with similar commercialisation-stage profile.
• Fulcrum BioEnergy: US-based company developing municipal solid waste to synthetic crude and renewable jet/diesel fuel via Fischer-Tropsch gasification. Directly comparable in feedstock (MSW), pathway (gasification-to-liquid), and end product (renewable diesel).

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

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Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ridge Partners