By Abby Miller – Reporter, Cincinnati Business Courier
Jan 22, 2024

A Blue Ash-based company has inked a lease for an expanded headquarters in the Cincinnati suburb, fueled by a recent investment from Goldman Sachs.

Synthica Energy signed a lease for 8,105 square feet of space at One Kenwood Place, located at 9825 Kenwood Road, commercial real estate firm JLL announced in a Jan. 19 news release. Britney Aviles, JLL brokerage analyst, and Michelle Klingenberg, senior vice president at JLL, represented Synthica in the transaction.

“Synthica is a key player in making Cincinnati, and the rest of the country, a more sustainable place,” Aviles said in the release. “By helping them find an office space with modern, optimized amenities and close proximity to major freeways, they can continue to drive efforts that help businesses better manage their waste.”

Synthica, founded in 2017, is a renewable energy company developing large-scale methane conversion facilities that turn organic waste into renewable natural gas (RNG). The firm contracts with major food, beverage and industrial manufacturers to receive a continuous supply of feedstock, giving the manufacturers an alternative to landfills.

The new headquarters represents a significant expansion of Synthica’s footprint in Blue Ash. Prior, the company occupied 750 square feet of office space on nearby Alliance Road. Synthica was able to expand after leveraging its equity investment from Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s infrastructure business that will help expand its renewable developments across the United States. The total amount was not disclosed.

The investment, announced Aug. 7, 2023, will immediately accelerate Synthica’s developments in Texas, Georgia, Kentucky and Louisiana and allow further expansion into Florida, Illinois, Missouri, New York and Pennsylvania in the coming years.

It’s also yet another example of the flight-to-quality trend in Greater Cincinnati. One Kenwood Place is a Class A office with proximity to Interstate 71 and Ronald Reagan Highway. One Kenwood Place also has 250 surface parking spaces; state-of-the-art HVAC and heating systems; and is within walking distance to many restaurant and retail options.

“Our move to One Kenwood Place is part of a larger organizational initiative to advance our goal of bringing renewable energy facilities to cities across the United States,” CEO Sam Schutte said in the release. “This office space gives us the ability to grow and deepen our impact in offering expanded sustainable solutions with new users, which will ultimately result in environmental protection, investment and job creation.”

Synthica in July 2023 broke ground on the first renewable natural gas plant in the Cincinnati region. The plant is located on Vine Street in St. Bernard and is owned by Hamilton RNG Holdings, a joint venture between Synthica and a subsidiary of UGI Corporation, a King of Prussia, Pa.-based utility company.

The company predicts the plant will divert nearly 200,000 tons of waste from local landfills each year and employee about 20 people.