$9 million in funding for Jet Zero Australia SAF development
October 1, 2024
Australia’s hopes of home-grown SAF are one step closer to reality through the allocation of $9 million in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) to Jet Zero Australia, part of ARENA’s first SAF funding announcement.
Established in 2021 to expedite work towards Australia’s first alcohol-to-jet fuel (ATJ) facility, Jet Zero Australia’s next phase of engineering activities will include a $36.8 million front-end engineering design (FEED) study to determine the viability of its commercial-scale production facility.
With biofuel SAF facing ongoing feedstock constraints, the use of ATJ production pathways (able to convert ethanol as a drop-in fuel blend) will help facilitate large scale production of new fuels. “With abundant feedstocks and vast renewable energy resources, Australia is well placed to produce the sustainable aviation fuels we need, right here at home,” said ARENA CEO Darren Miller. The facility will employ licensed LanzaJet ATJ technology.
“We’ll be taking an active role in making sure the lessons from Jet Zero Australia’s study are shared with the industry at large, helping build a path to large-scale production in Australia,” explained ARENA CEO Darren Miller.
Jet Zero Australia CEO Ed Mason said the support from ARENA, along with ongoing support from the Queensland Government, will aid the development of a new commercial pathway to produce over 113 million litres of SAF and renewable diesel a year from agricultural by-products in Australia.
According to ARENA’s Bioenergy Roadmap, a domestic SAF industry could create up to 26,000 jobs by 2030, with regional Australia (which will produce the domestic agricultural feedstocks) to receive most of these new jobs.
The FEED project’s activities are due for completion in 2025, after which a final investment decision will be made.
