LanzaTech launches LanzaJet to produce sustainable aviation fuel

Canada’s leading integrated energy company, Suncor Energy Inc., and leading Japanese trading and investment company, Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (Mitsui), are investing US$15 million and US$10 million, respectively, to establish LanzaJet.

The funding will be used to build a demonstration plant that will produce 10 million (US) gallons (≈37.85 million litres) per annum of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel starting from sustainable ethanol sources. Production is expected to start in early 2022.

This initial investment coupled with participation from All Nippon Airways (ANA) will complement the existing US$14 million grant from the US Department of Energy (DOE), enabling the construction of an integrated biorefinery at LanzaTech’s Freedom Pines site in Soperton, Georgia (GA).

Off-take and phased future investment

In addition to its equity investment, Suncor has contracted to take a significant portion of the SAF and renewable diesel produced at the facility to provide its jet fuel and distillate customers with sustainable energy solutions.

Suncor is excited to join LanzaTech, Mitsui, and ANA in helping LanzaJet take off. We believe this technology will provide a solid foundation for the commercial production of sustainable aviation fuel and renewable diesel. These products are very complementary to our existing product mix and we see growth potential in both North American and international markets. Suncor is committed to both a low carbon future for our own business and to helping our customers, including in the space of commercial aviation, realize their own vision of a sustainable future, said Mark Little President and CEO of Suncor.

Importantly, investors Suncor and Mitsui are aiming to invest further in the construction of commercial production facilities after the demonstration meets all its technical and economic targets. This novel phased investment approach will see the initial investment followed by a capital call once all the demonstration milestones have been met.

We are pleased to launch LanzaJet along with excellent partners LanzaTech, Suncor, and ANA. This partnership demonstrates our continuing commitment to improving the sustainability of the aviation industry and supports our ambition to be the first in Japan to produce SAF on a commercial scale. The SAF produced by LanzaJet will support the development of a global SAF supply chain, which has the potential to significantly reduce emissions from aviation and help to create a low carbon society, said Toru Matsui, Managing Officer of Mitsui.

This will significantly accelerate commercial deployment at a time when reducing emissions, especially of aviation, is increasingly important and demonstrates a joint commitment to creating a resilient, climate secure future.

ANA is thrilled to work alongside LanzaTech, Mitsui and Suncor on this new venture. We believe that this partnership is a great step forward for carbon-neutral growth initiatives. ANA is happy to share in this innovative endeavor and to be a part of a carbon-free future in the aviation industry, said Akihiko Miura, Executive Vice President of ANA.

Industry all-rounder heads LanzaJet

Industry leader, Jimmy Samartzis, has joined as CEO of LanzaJet, bringing a background in clean energy, public policy, infrastructure, and sustainability, as well as a decade at United Airlines including multiple executive roles in operations, commercial, corporate affairs, strategy, renewables, and safety.

Currently serving as a Director on the Board for the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, he has held various industry roles, including with Airlines for America and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), and advised the World Travel and Tourism Council.

The launch of LanzaJet marks a historic milestone in the clean energy transition that is underway globally. I’ve been part of many renewable energy and sustainability firsts over the last decade, and this one is the most exciting. The commercialization of LanzaJet – built on the shoulders of LanzaTech, Suncor, Mitsui, ANA, and with the support of the US Department of Energy – gives our world, and aviation, in particular, an important solution in shaping a cleaner future, said Jimmy Samartzis, CEO of LanzaJet.

The LanzaJet process can use any source of sustainable ethanol for jet fuel production, including, but not limited to, ethanol made from recycled pollution, the core application of LanzaTech’s carbon recycling platform.

Commercialization of this process, called Alcohol-to-Jet (AtJ) has been years in the making, starting with the partnership between LanzaTech and the US Energy Department’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). PNNL developed a unique catalytic process to upgrade ethanol to alcohol-to-jet synthetic paraffinic kerosene (ATJ-SPK) which LanzaTech took from the laboratory to the pilot scale.

Achieving our global climate goals requires scaling new, transformative technologies rapidly. This requires new methods of financing that enable scaling from the lab to pilot to demo to commercial without stopping after each step to raise more cash. Suncor, Mitsui, and ANA are stepping up to show that achieving a meaningful scale will require new technologies, new business models, and new approaches. I am delighted to see LanzaJet take off and to see Jimmy Samartzis lead the team as it brings this sustainable solution to market, ended Jennifer Holmgren, CEO of LanzaTech.