The flattened stems (known as cladodes) are harvested and put in to an anerobic digester. Anerobic bacteria digest the cactus and produce raw biogas which is a combination of CO2 and Methane. The biogas is captured and can be converted to electricity, upgraded to pipeline quality natural gas, or converted to other forms of biofuel.

When compared to other forms of renewable energy such as solar, wind, or geothermal, the outputs are lower. However, growing cactus at scale has a much lower environmental impact because it does not rely on carbon-intensive inputs such as concrete, steel, photovoltaic cells, etc.

Opuntia biomass production can also be co-located with existing renewable energy projects. Co-location with wind farms is of particular benefit in regard to maximizing the productivity of land committed to the project and reducing environmental impacts.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.

Yes, opuntia can be easily and reliably co-digested with other feedstocks. There is robust data which shows that adding opuntia as a feedstock increases biogas yields.