Sustainable fuels producer LanzaJet officially opened the first ethanol-to-sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) refinery in the world in southeastern Georgia on Wednesday. The Freedom Pines Fuels plant, which will be able to produce 10 million gallons of SAF and renewable diesel annually, has buyers lined up for its fuel for the next 10 years, said an aviation news site.
LanzaJet, which is based in the Chicago suburbs, said its ethanol-based technology was capable of scaling up production to levels needed to decarbonize aviation, which produces 2 to 3 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. “As we start up the plant, we will continue to refine our technology while launching our efforts to advance new sustainable fuel projects globally,” said Jimmy Samartzis, LanzaJet chief executive.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Energy Department deputy secretary David Turk attended the plant opening in Soperton, Georgia. On social media, Vilsack said SAF “not only creates new climate-smart commodity markets for producers, but also centers the revitalization of rural and agricultural communities in a valuable, emerging industry.” The administration says SAF could grow into a 36-billion-gallon-a-year market.
As feedstocks, the Freedom Pines plant will use agricultural waste, municipal solid waste, energy crops, and captured carbon from industrial processes, said Aviation International News.