SAF Production Challengers

The landscape of SAF is as diverse as it is innovative, with emerging players challenging conventional production methods and reshaping the industry. As we navigate towards a sustainable future, we shine the spotlight on five promising challengers – Twelve, Air Company, Synhelion, Dimensional Energy, and Velocys – that are embracing unique and innovative pathways.

While these companies might not currently have the highest offtake commitments, their groundbreaking work is noteworthy. By focusing on abundant and renewable resources such as the sun or air for their inputs, these companies are driving a paradigm shift in SAF production.

Their methods offer hope for a future where SAF can be produced without straining global resources and feedstocks. Their technological advances could lead to more sustainable and economically viable SAF production processes, serving to democratise the industry, reduce carbon emissions, and potentially transform aviation as we know it.

TWELVE

• Country: USA

• Pathway: Air-to-fuel

• Key Parners: Etihad, Alaska Airlines, Microsoft, US Air Force

• Website: twelve.co

Twelve, previously Opus 12, was established from pioneering discoveries in CO2 electrocatalysis by Dr Etosha Cave and Dr Kendra Kuhl at Stanford University. They co-founded Twelve in 2015 with Nicholas Flanders, aiming to revolutionise emissions reduction by creating critical chemicals from CO2, not fossil fuels.

Their proprietary CO2Made® technology mimics photosynthesis at an industrial scale, converting CO2 into useful products using water and renewable energy while only producing water and oxygen. This innovative electrochemical reactor can make thousands of chemicals and fuel products from air that are currently made from oil.

The technology includes a novel CO2-reducing catalyst, which electrifies CO2 and water, again producing only water and oxygen as outputs. This system can be seamlessly integrated into existing industrial frameworks due to its modular and scalable design.

Their Opus™ platform, launching in 2023, could potentially eliminate up to 10% of global emissions by transforming supply chains from fossil fuels to CO2 reliance.

AIR COMPANY

• Country: USA

• Pathway: Air-to-fuel

• Key Parners: Air Canada, US Air Force, Boeing, Boom Supersonic, JetBlue, Virgin Atlantic, NASA

• Website: aircompany.com

What sets Air Company apart is their proprietary AIRMADE™ technology that imitates the recipe of photosynthesis. It transforms carbon dioxide into impurity-free alcohols that can be used to create a variety of consumer goods. The only three inputs that are required are air (carbon dioxide), water, and sun (renewable energy).

Launching initially with a carbon-negative vodka, Air Vodka, Air Company is now producing carbon-converted Air Spray hand sanitiser and Air Eau de Parfum, among other consumer innovations in the pipeline. However, Air Company has been able to take things further and has created a single-step 100% drop-in sustainable aviation fuel made from carbon dioxide.

E-fuels are typically made using the Fischer-Tropsch process, which has an energy efficiency of only 20%. Air Company’s process, on the other hand, achieves an efficiency of 50%, more than double that of Fischer-Tropsch. Their AIRMADE™ SAF is predicted to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 97%.

JetBlue, Boom Supersonic, Virgin Atlantic and the US Air Force are just a few of the customers Air Company works with. They’ve also worked with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to make rocket fuel from captured CO2 and recently won an additional grant with them to continue its research and development of kerosene-based rocket fuel.

DIMENSIONAL ENERGY

• Country: USA

• Pathway: Air-to-fuel

• Key Parners: United Airlines, Boom Supersonic

• Website: dimensionalenergy.com

Dimensional Energy™ is a company that focuses on transforming carbon dioxide into SAF. Dimensional Energy's process involves using carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and industrial sites, and hydrogen derived from water, to produce their products. Their proprietary technology, the Dimensional Energy™ reactor and catalysts, break down the carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide, which then mixes with hydrogen to make synthesis gas or syngas, a building block for fuel and products. This allows them to produce 15 barrels of valuable products for every 10 tons of carbon dioxide processed.

The company is operating a facility in Tucson, Arizona, supported by the US Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) and Solar Energy Technology Office (SETO), that produces SAF and other products. By 2023, the company plans to operate the world's first point source production facility for SAF at a Lafarge Canada cement plant in Vancouver, BC.

In 2025, in collaboration with Seneca Holdings, Dimensional Energy™ aims to commission a commercial-scale, hydroelectric-powered carbon dioxide-to-fuels plant in Niagara Falls, NY. The goal is to produce 8,400 gallons of fuel per day. By 2027, the company plans to expand its production to 42,000+ gallons per day, with operations in California and beyond, intending to fuel global air travel.

Recent investment from United Airlines is accelerating this timeline. The company's goal is to replace 11% of global emissions or about 4.4 billion tons per year with Dimensional Energy™ fuel, turning them into industrial use.

SYNHELION

• Country: Switzerland

• Pathway: Sun-to-fuel

• Key Parners: SWISS, Edelweiss, Lufthansa Group

• Website: synhelion.com

Synhelion has developed a unique technology to produce sustainable solar fuels from solar energy. Their fuels include kerosene, gasoline, diesel, methanol, hydrogen, and synthetic crude oil, and can be used in existing vehicles and aircraft, offering a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels.

Their process works by reflecting solar radiation onto a receiver, converting it into high-temperature process heat. This heat is then fed to a thermochemical reactor that produces syngas, a mix of H2 and CO, which is processed into fuels. Excess heat is stored for 24/7 operation.

Synhelion is building DAWN, the world’s first industrial-scale solar fuel plant, in Jülich, Germany. It is set to produce thousands of litres of solar fuel per year and is due to be commissioned in 2023/2024. The first commercial plant, planned in Spain, will produce 1.25 million litres of solar fuel per year.

Synhelion recently announced two major financial boosts. Firstly, the U.S. Department of Energy granted $3.2 million to Solar MEAD, a project led by Synhelion, CEMEX, and Sandia National Laboratories, which seeks to reduce carbon emissions in cement production. Secondly, Synhelion successfully raised CHF 22 million in a financing round, with contributions from existing investors and new strategic ones, including Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS). These funds will facilitate the company's growth and expedite the scaling and commercialisation of its innovative technology.

VELOCYS

• Country: UK

• Pathway: Waste-to-fuel

• Key Parners: IAG, Southwest Airlines

• Website: velocys.com

Velocys, a sustainable fuels technology company listed on the London Stock Exchange, has been advancing its patented technology over the past twenty years to produce netzero SAF on a commercial scale.

Originating as a spin-off from the University of Oxford, Velocys utilises waste materials like municipal waste and woody biomass to create SAF. This is achieved by enhancing the Fischer-Tropsch process, a method for synthesising hydrocarbons, which allows for the production of synthetic fuel without altering existing jet engines or airport infrastructure. The company offers a full package to project developers, owners, and operators, providing reactors, catalysts, and engineering services. Velocys claims to produce the world's most compact Fischer-Tropsch reactor, making advanced biofuels from large, sustainable carbon sources like household waste and forest residues.

A new reactor core assembly facility has been built in Columbus, Ohio, with production capacity to meet projected orders until 2028. The site can produce around 12 reactors a year. Furthermore, in collaboration with British Airways, Velocys is developing Altalto, a commercial waste-to-fuel plant in the UK, which is expected to be Europe's first commercial-scale waste-to-jet-fuel facility.