United Airlines Ventures has added eight new corporate partners to its Sustainable Flight Fund that aims to reduce emissions from the aviation sector through innovative technology and drive production of sustainable aviation fuel by providing startups with financial and strategic capital. The eight partners – Aircastle (a Marubeni & Mitzuho Leasing Company), Air New Zealand, Embraer, Google, HIS, Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking, Safran Corporate Ventures and Technip Energies – join 14 others in the fund that now exceeds $200 million. Described by United as a first-of-its-kind effort, the fund’s corporate partners make up all parts of the aviation supply chain, including airlines, aircraft and engine manufacturers, fuel producers, engineering and technology experts, financiers and travel management. United also offers its customers an opportunity to contribute to the fund when booking a flight, which has raised nearly $500,000 since the fund was launched in February 2023. SAF startups supported to date amongst others include Alder Renewables, Cemvita, OXCCU and Fulcrum BioEnergy, while aircraft technology startups include Archer Aviation, Eve Air Mobility, Heart Aerospace and ZeroAvia.

United has ambitions to be net zero by 2050 without relying on traditional carbon offsets and as the largest airline in the world measured by available seat miles, it is investing in companies and technologies, particularly sustainable aviation fuel, that can reduce its future emissions. In addition to the Sustainable Flight Fund, in 2021 it launched the Eco-Skies Alliance that has participation from leading global corporations to help find ways to reduce their environmental impact through the use of sustainable aviation fuels. United says it has already invested in future production of more than five billion gallons of SAF through forward purchase agreements, more than any other airline.

“SAF is the best tool we have to decarbonise airplanes, but we don’t have enough of it,” commented Andrew Chang, Managing Director of United Airlines Ventures. “To create the fuel supply we need for our fleet, United recognised that we would have to help build a brand-new industry from scratch – like wind and solar in previous decades. As part of our effort to build a new sustainable aviation ecosystem, we recruited a group of partners with the industry expertise to support our startups with both financial and strategic capital, to help them navigate the entire process from conception to commercialisation.”

United’s customers using the airline’s website or app, which now show an estimated carbon emissions for each flight, can help supplement the fund by contributing $1, $3.50 or $7 during the flight booking process before check-out. The airline reports 115,000 people have contributed since February 2023. If the 152 million people who flew on United in 2022 each contributed $3.50 to the fund, says the airline, that would be enough to build a SAF refinery capable of producing around 40 million gallons of alternative fuel annually, based on an illustrative capital expenditure benchmark of $200,000 per barrel per day to build such a facility.

One of the new partners in the fund is Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer, which sees an increase in the availability of SAF as a “key driving factor” to achieve aviation sustainability and has already performed flight tests on 100% neat SAF. “In a joint collaborative effort with our partners, we can accelerate large-scale SAF production as the aviation industry progresses towards the goal of net zero emissions by 2050,” commented Embraer’s Head of Corporate Innovation, Leonardo Garnica.

Photo: United Airlines

Christopher Surgenor

Editor

• Linkedin

Two emerging US producers of sustainable aviation fuel have won significant new support, with Houston-based Cemvita Corporation announcing a 20-year SAF offtake deal from United Airlines, and New York-based DG Fuels securing Airbus as a strategic partner. United, which last year invested in Cemvita, has now committed to acquire 1 billion gallons (almost 3.8 billion litres) of SAF from the company, or up to 50 million gallons (189 million litres) per year. The fuel will be made from recycled carbon dioxide. The Airbus partnership with DG Fuels includes agreement that a portion of the SAF produced at the company’s first plant in Louisiana will be for Airbus customers. DG Fuels will use wind and solar power to produce SAF from cellulosic waste products such as forestry residue. It plans to begin SAF production in 2026.

United’s investment in Cemvita served the dual purpose of increasing renewable fuel pathways and securing the airline’s own long-term supplies of SAF. The Cemvita fuel acquired by United will be produced by using synthetic biology, a method which recreates the natural process of photosynthesis to convert CO2 to non-fossil fuels or chemicals. 

“Cemvita’s technology has the potential to provide more reliable feedstock production with minimal land, water and electricity needs,” the company explained. It said output of eCO2 plants had the potential to be carbon-negative, and that Cemvita aimed to be cost-competitive with existing crop-based HEFA (hydro-processed esters and fatty acids) feedstocks and fuels.

“Since our initial investment last year, Cemvita has made outstanding progress, including opening their new pilot plant – an important step towards producing sustainable aviation fuel,” said Michael Leskinen, President of United Airlines Ventures, which invests in like-minded businesses focused on new aviation technologies.

“United is the global leader in SAF production investment,” he said, “but we face a real shortage of available fuel and producers. Cemvita’s technology represents a path forward for a potentially significant supply of SAF and it’s our hope that this offtake agreement for up to 1 billion gallons is just the beginning of our collaboration.”

Moji Karimi, CEO of Cemvita, welcomed the added commitment from United and its role in accelerating the energy transition.

“Biology is capable of truly amazing things,” he said. “This agreement featuring our unique SAF platform is a major milestone towards demonstrating our journey to full commercialisation.”

Neither company specified a timeline for the latest deal. 

Like United in its Cemvita investment, the Airbus partnership with DG Fuels is designed to accelerate new production pathways for SAF, and access for its own customers, as demand for the low-emission fuels increases. The partnership – details of which were not disclosed – will also support DG Fuels’ aims by early 2024 to launch the equity process and reach a final investment decision on building its first plant in the US.

“Sustainable aviation fuels play a crucial role in enabling aviation’s decarbonisation roadmap,” said Airbus CEO Guillame Faury. “We are committed to supporting all efforts that contribute to making them available at scale around the globe.

“The partnership with DG Fuels supports the emergence of a new technological pathway, allowing for the production of SAFs from a broader range of waste and residue resources, first in the US, with a potential for large-scale production worldwide.”

Initially, DG Fuels is targeting an average annual production capacity of 120 million gallons (454 million litres), which it estimates could avert 1.5 million tonnes of aircraft CO2 emissions from 2026.

“The DG Fuels team is excited to have finalised this SAF partnership with Airbus. We look forward to working together to accelerate the initial SAF facility in Louisiana and the subsequent scale-up at various locations in the United States and beyond,” said Michael Darcy, Chairman and CEO of DG Fuels. 

The two US SAF developments closely follow the release of a new global survey, which found SAF offtake deals in the first seven months of 2023 were less than half the number of deals of the previous year. The study, by energy sector analyst S&P Global Commodity Insights, says policy decisions in Europe and the US have driven a surge of commitments to secure SAF, overtaking supplies promised by fuel producers.

As well, says the report, concerns over the availability of appropriate feedstocks to produce the new fuels have dampened the growth outlook for the SAF sector.

“There was a rush to secure SAF deals in 2021-22 ahead of the introduction of the RefuelEU Aviation package, as airline companies did not want to be left out from the race,” said S&P biofuels analyst Akman Ozel.

And following the Biden Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, many more investment decisions, offtake agreements and Memorandums of Understanding were signed, added US-based S&P biofuels analyst Jamie Dorner. “Recently, though, it has become clearer that at that rate, offtake agreements were beginning to outpace supply, which has in part contributed to the fever cooling off,” she said.    

Photo (Jane Widdowson / Beetroot): Airbus

Tony Harrington

Correspondent

Add your content…

• Linkedin
• Twitter
• Email

The United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund, which was launched five months ago with more than $100 million in investments from United and five partners, has increased in size to $200 million with the addition of eight new partners: American Express Global Business Travel, Aramco Ventures, Aviation Capital Group, Bank of America, Boston Consulting Group, Groupe ADP, Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue Ventures. The fund is a way for companies and consumers to come together and increase the supply of sustainable aviation fuel through the support of startups. The new corporate members join inaugural partners Air Canada, Boeing, GE Aerospace, JPMorgan Chase and Honeywell. United’s customers also have the option to contribute to supplement the airline’s investment in the fund when they book flights and since the fund launched, more than 60,000 customers have contributed over $200,000. To date, United has invested in the future production of over five billion gallons of SAF – the most of any airline in the world, it says, with existing investments moved into the new fund.

“While United can’t decarbonise the airline industry alone, we can use our leadership and credibility in this space to rally other to join us,” said Michael Leskinen, President of United Airlines Ventures, with the airline saying it will continue to recruit corporations across industries to join the fund and will prioritise investment in new technology, advanced fuel sources and proven producers in order to help scale the supply of SAF. Partners also have the potential to gain preferential access to environmental attributes associated with United’s future supply of SAF.

“As companies across the globe are increasingly looking for ways to reduce their environmental impact from flying, the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund presents a unique opportunity,” Leskinen added. “Instead of fighting over the current limited supply of SAF, with our partners, we’re working collaboratively to help scale the SAF industry itself, and to get an equity stake in groundbreaking technology while doing it.”

Through the fund, United intends to invest in a variety of SAF feedstocks and technologies. In the past two years, UAV has made investments in or signed purchase agreements with companies using a variety of ingredients and technologies to produce SAF, including feedstocks like ethanol, animal byproducts, forestry and crop waste, and municipal waste. This is in addition to early-stage, promising technologies such as synthetic biology and power-to-liquids, incorporating renewable power, hydrogen and carbon capture processes.

SAF companies to date receiving investment from UAV include Alder Fuels, Cemvita, Dimensional Energy, Fulcrum BioEnergy, Next Renewable Fuels, Svante and Viridos.

Following an investment in sodium-ion battery-maker Natron Energy, UAV this month announced another electric battery investment, this time with Electric Power Systems, a company producing battery technology that can potentially be used for a broad suite of aerospace applications. Rather than producing battery cells, the company says its compatible module technology can be adapted to support a variety of batteries, that could allow United to consider its modules for a number of near-term applications. EPS aims to provide a whole battery ‘ecosystem’ for aviation, from the packs on aircraft to charging stations on the ground.

United is exploring options to move its pilot training academy, Aviate, away from internal combustion-powered training aircraft to electric ones. EPS says its powertrain could serve as the core propulsion system for a family of future electric aircraft concepts, starting with an electric trainer and scaling to larger variants as technology advances. Additionally, United has more than 12,000 pieces of motorised ground equipment across its operations, of which about one third are currently electric, and EPS’s battery modules could potentially be deployed in support of several uses.

Photo: United Airlines

Christopher Surgenor

Editor

• Linkedin

After a four-year absence due to the global pandemic, the aerospace industry returned in force to the Paris Air Show, which was marked not just by 1,260-plus orders and options for new aircraft, but also by a flood of product, procurement and partnership deals focused on reducing the sector’s impact on the environment. The event was also thick with news of zero-emission aircraft and propulsion systems, technology breakthroughs promising higher efficiency and lower emissions, and research and development programmes to refine or explore paths to more sustainable aviation. An order by India’s largest airline, IndiGo, for 500 Airbus A320 and 321 neo jets to accommodate huge growth plans beyond 2030, reinforced forecasts that the global commercial fleet will double in size over the next 20 years.

Multiple commitments and technology advances were announced for the evolving electric aviation sector, most with certification and entry-into-service targets between 2025 and 2030. Miami-based AeroLease announced it had signed a letter of intent (LOI) to acquire 50 Eviation Alice electric commuter planes, while Netherlands-based start-up Maeve Aerospace unveiled a revised version of its proposed 44-seat Maeve 01 all-electric aircraft, to be powered with four 1.2 Mw electric motors. Maeve is aiming for certification in 2028 and entry into commercial service in 2030.

French start-up Aura Aero confirmed commitments and collaborations in Europe, the US and Africa for its ERA electric thrust aircraft, which will be offered in passenger and freight configurations. Maltese executive fleet operator Elit’ Avia and French regional carrier Pan Europeene signed LOIs for a combined 12 planes. Additionally, Utah-based freight airline Alpine Air Express signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to assist Aura Aero in gaining US certification for the ERA and Gabon-based AfriJet signed a MoU, which, while not specifying details, the airline’s CEO, Marc Gaffajoli, described as “for us, the most plausible and mature solution.”

Marseille-based airframer Daher, together with Airbus and Safran, exhibited for the first time their EcoPulse aircraft, a hybrid-electric distributed propulsion testbed, which will rely on a single independent electrical source to power multiple engines. Based on Daher’s TBM aircraft platform, the EcoPulse has six wing-mounted e-propellers provided by Safran, and two power sources – a Safran gas turbine and a battery pack supplied by Airbus. The demonstrator will begin flight testing later this year as part of a programme to define, develop and deliver a hybrid-powered plane to market by 2027.

Another French start-up, Beyond Aero, unveiled its four-passenger BYA-1 hydrogen-electric jet, while the Volt Aero Cassio 330, a 4-5 seat hybrid-electric aircraft, was also displayed ahead of its first flight in the coming weeks.

US-based electric powertrain developer MagniX said it would soon start converting a De Havilland Dash 7 aircraft into a zero-emission testbed, replacing two of its four Pratt and Whitney Canada PT6A engines with new MagniX 650 electric motors, and a pair of 450kwH battery packs. Another electric propulsion developer, Wright Electric, announced that ground trials of its new aerospace motor-generator had delivered 1 Megawatt (1,300 horsepower) of energy, enabling it to be used as a turbogenerator or auxiliary power unit for high altitude commercial or defence applications.

Airbus announced a research and development partnership with Geneva-based STMicroelectronics to explore the development of lighter, more efficient power electronics required for future hybrid-powered aircraft and all-electric air taxis. They will focus on wide bandgap Silicon Carbide and Gallium Nitride semiconductor materials, which have better electrical properties than conventional conductors such as silicon.

Rolls–Royce revealed it was ready to test its first small gas turbine, developed as a turbogenerator system for novel propulsion aircraft including electric air taxis, and hybrid-electric commuter planes seating up to 19 passengers. Additionally, regional jet maker Embraer announced a joint venture with Japanese electric motor manufacturer NIDEC to develop propulsion systems for eVTOL aircraft, with Embraer’s air taxi division Eve Air Mobility the launch customer.

Hydrogen propulsion developer ZeroAvia announced multiple deals, the largest of them an agreement to deliver 250 hydrogen-electric ZA2000 engines for 40-80 seat turboprop conversions to California-based Flyshare, which will launch a new airline, Air Cahana, on the west coast. UK-based lessor Monte also firmed a previously-provisional order for 100 ZA 600 powertrains for 9-19 seat aircraft, while French lessor Green Aerolease signed an MoU to acquire an unspecified number of ZA 600 units.

ZeroAvia also revealed that in tests with MHIRJ, the type certificate holder for CRJ regional jets, “clear applications” had been identified to retrofit regional jet aircraft with hydrogen-electric propulsion systems. The initial aircraft suitable for conversion to ZeroAvia’s proposed ZA 2000RJ powertrain would be a CRJ 700 aircraft, though the technical study also validated conversions of other in-service CRJ-series jets, including the CRJ 500 and 990 models.

Another zero-emission start-up, Sydney-based Dovetail Electric Aviation, announced a partnership with HTWO, the hydrogen power division of Korea’s Hyundai Motor Company, to test a hydrogen-electric powertrain for regional aircraft, with a view to commencing test flights as early as next year.

Deutsche Aircraft revealed the first metal was being cut for the prototype of its 40-seat D328eco regional airliner, a 100% SAF-compatible turboprop, which is scheduled for its first flight in 2025 and targeting entry into service by 2026, while at the opposite end of the scale US-based Jet Zero revealed its Z4 blended wing concept, targeted as a replacement for mid-market aircraft including the Boeing 767 and 787-8, with fuel burn savings of up to 50%.

The Airbus research arm UpNext announced a new test programme to investigate the replacement of a fossil-fuelled auxiliary power unit with a hydrogen fuel cell system to power non-propulsive aircraft functions including air conditioning, cabin lighting and avionics. An A330-200 jet will be retrofitted for the programme, taking to the air by late 2025.

Airbus also signed a MoU with US-based SAF producer LanzaJet to advance the construction of facilities to produce sustainable aviation fuel using LanzaJet’s alcohol-to-jet technology, while global energy company Sasol and Topsoe, a specialist in carbon reduction technologies, agreed to form a 50-50 joint venture to develop, build, own and operate new SAF plants, and market renewable fuels. E-fuel producer Twelve also used the Paris show to announce plans for SAF production from CO2 and renewable energy at a new plant to be built in the US state of Washington.

United Airlines Ventures revealed that another seven to eight partners would join its Sustainable Flight Fund within the next two months, and foreshadowed investment in new SAF offtake deals as producers built renewable fuel capacity.

On the eve of the Paris Air Show, seven chief technology officers from major aviation manufacturers released a statement committing to “supporting policies that increase the supply of SAF while ensuring a consistent and predictable demand through harmonised global measures.”

The CTOs of Airbus, Boeing, Dassault Aviation, GE Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce and Safran added: “We are unified in the proposition that our industry has a prosperous and more sustainable future, and that we can make it happen through the near-term implementation of lasting industry-wide and globalised harmonised policies.”

Photo: French President Emmanuel Macron visits Aura Aero display at the Paris Air Show

United Airlines has announced a $15 million investment in Svante, a Canadian company specialising in carbon capture and removal technology. Svante’s proprietary technology uses structured absorbent beds, or filters, to capture CO2 sucked from the atmosphere or from industrial emission sources, for conversion into fuel or removal and storage. The investment, part of Svante’s Series E financing round, was made by UAV Sustainable Flight Fund, a division recently established by United to support companies focused on SAF research, technology and production. United is committed to eliminating its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 without the use of conventional carbon offsets, and has invested in a range of emerging SAF producers and zero-emission aircraft and engine concepts. It has also invested in the future production of more than 3 billion gallons of SAF – more, it claims, than any other airline – using a variety of feedstocks and production processes.

Svante, named after Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenuis, who is credited as one of the first to identify the correlation between increased CO2 in the atmosphere and warming of the Earth’s surface, is a specialist in second-generation sorbent-based carbon capture and removal, through which structured absorbent beds, or filters, are used to capture atmospheric CO2, called direct air capture (DAC), or 95% of CO2 emissions from industrial flue gas, which is referred to as point-source carbon capture.

The investment by United is part of Svante’s Series E financing round, which will be used to fund and support its commercial-scale filter production facility in Vancouver. Among the company’s partners is Dimensional Energy, a CO2-to-jet fuel company in which United Airlines Ventures invested last year.

“Carbon capture technology has the potential to be a critical solution in the fight to stop climate change and has the added benefit of helping us scale the production of SAF,” said Scott Kirby, United’s CEO. “There’s no question that this carbon utilisation is in its infancy today but as a leader in sustainable flying, we must help build the foundation to deploy this technology of the future as expediently as possible. We’re building on that approach by investing in both companies that can capture CO2 and others that can turn it into fuel. United’s investment in Svante reflects our dedication to making sustainable travel a reality.”

Svante CEO Claude Letourneau responded: “The airline industry has a huge opportunity to make a big impact on global decarbonisation, battling climate change through the transition to sustainable aviation fuels and other innovative technologies that will help the world achieve net zero. We are pleased to have the support of United Airlines as one of our world-class investors. Their investment in companies like ours will aid in accelerating the commercialisation of carbon capture and removal technology.”

Jason Salfi, CEO of Dimensional Energy, said his company and Svante were already working together to design integrated systems for CO2 conversion to SAF. “There is enough CO2 in the atmosphere and in industrial process emissions to provide all of the carbon necessary for the fuels and products people use every day, now and into the future,” he said. “Svante provides the first step towards a circular carbon economy.”      

Warned Letourneau: “Without carbon capture, utilisation and storage, the world will not reach net zero by mid-century,” he warned. “To effectively capture the CO2 currently being emitted into the atmosphere, the world needs to have 10,000 capture plants running over the next 30 years, or two plants a week in the next decade, at a cost of approximately $250 million per plant.” 

United’s investment in Svante is representative of a growing number of deals in North America enabled by the Biden Administration’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, a major initiative which includes a blended tax credit for SAF infrastructure and supply as well as incentives for clean energy and carbon capture. When the legislation was announced, Letourneau described it as “a monumental bill that truly demonstrates America’s commitment to climate action, and a way to monetise CO2 emissions to develop a viable carbon management industry. Its impact will drive the investment required to bring mass commercial-scale projects to financial investment decision.”

Founded in 2007, Svante currently has four pilot plants in Canada and California and its Series E fundraising round, led by Chevron New Energies, closed at $318 million.

Graphic: Svante’s technology employs structured absorbent beds, known as filters, which can capture 95% of CO2 emissions from industrial sites as well as CO2 that’s already in the air. Once the CO2 is captured, it is concentrated and can be used in the creation of SAF or other products. It can also be safely transported and stored underground.

United Airline’s recently-launched UAV Sustainable Flight Fund has made its first investment: $5 million in algae biofuel company Viridos, which is using bioengineering technology to convert saltwater algae into sustainable, low-carbon jet and diesel fuel. In total, the California-based company, formerly known as Synthetic Genomics, has raised $25 million in a Series A equity investment round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) and joined by Chevron and United Airlines Ventures (UAV). The funding will be used for R&D to further increase algae oil productivity to reach commercially deployable levels. Viridos claims its bioengineering of microalgae has already achieved seven times the oil productivity compared to wild algae and says sustainable aviation fuel made from its oil is expected to have a 70% reduced carbon footprint. Over a decade ago, algae was touted as a highly promising SAF feedstock and was used in both commercial and military aircraft demonstration flights but fell out of favour over difficulties in scaling up the technology and poor economics.

However, Viridos says its technology, when combined with optimised production processes and systems, will enable large-scale algae production that far exceeds any traditional oil crop and achieve high algae oil output in comparatively small areas. The algae are grown in vessels containing seawater, which allows for contained deployment in hot and dry locations without taxing scarce freshwater and arable land resources. The company claims the algae have “extremely high” oil content and of a quality that allows existing biorefineries to process the oil with high yields.

Last year, Viridos was one of eight successful applicants to be awarded a California Competes Grant, which aims to incentivise businesses to choose California for investment and to stimulate the creation of quality, full-time jobs in the state. The company said the grant would allow it to create 70 high-paying professional jobs and bring nearly $75 million in investment to the Imperial Valley area in Southern California, where Viridos has an outdoor pilot programme, the California Advanced Algal Facility.

“By establishing production sites to grow Viridos-engineered microalgae in saltwater, we are creating the foundation for a biofuel future that moves away from fossil fuels without competing for precious resources such as fresh water and arable land,” commented Viridos CEO Oliver Fetzer. “We are excited to have the support from BEV, Chevron and United Airlines. Together, we can build the ecosystem needed to bring algae biofuels to the market. We look forward to bringing our oil-producing algae to commercial readiness and then growing them to produce scalable quantities of SAF and renewable diesel.”

Responded Breakthrough Energy Venture’s Carmichael Roberts: “Oliver and his team have a promising technology for converting algae into sustainable liquid fuels. The science behind their platform positions them to crack the code on the critical barriers to scale, making Viridos an important addition to our portfolio.”

BEV is a group of investors led by Bill Gates that has raised more than $2 billion in capital to invest in over 90 climate technology companies that have the potential to reduce greenhouse gases at scale. These include Heart Aerospace, the Swedish electric airplane maker, in which United Airlines has also made an investment as well as ordering 200 of its ES-19 aircraft, and ZeroAvia, which is developing hydrogen-electric powertrains for regional aircraft.

To date, United has invested in the future production of over three billion gallons of SAF, which the airline says is the most by any airline in the world.

“As the global aviation leader in SAF production investment, United remains committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050, without relying on traditional carbon offsets,” said Mike Leskinen, President of United Airlines Ventures. “Viridos’ algae-based biofuel technology has the potential to help solve our supply problem without the need for farmland or other agricultural resources and marks our inaugural investment in our new cross-industry UAV Sustainable Flight Fund.”

A year before its merger with United, Continental Airlines became the first US carrier to conduct a demonstration flight using sustainable aviation fuels when in January 2009 a Boeing 737-800 flight used a 50% blend of an algae-based (it was mixed with oil from the jatropha plant) fuel in one of its engines. In June 2011, the US Navy demonstrated a 50% blend of algae-based jet fuel produced by Solazyme, which was followed that November by a United Airlines flight from Houston to Chicago on a 40% blend of Solazyme’s algal jet fuel, so becoming the first US commercial flight powered in part by algae-based biofuel.

However, hopes of a breakthrough at the time in the use of algae as a SAF feedstock did not materialise. In 2016, Solazyme changed its name to TerraVia, with a change of focus away from fuels to food, nutrition and personal care, before filing for bankruptcy protection the following year. Sapphire Energy, another US algae-based company, supplied its Green Crude oil for the 2009 Continental flight. In 2019, it sold off its Integrated Algal BioRefinery to Green Stream Farms, which used it to grow algae for use in nutritional products and livestock feed.

“The story of algae-based SAF offers an interesting case study in the kind of obstacles that have delayed the decarbonisation of aviation,” says a blog by industry body the Algae Biomass Organization. “A decade ago, there was a frenzy of interest in algae for fuel that stirred up investments and lofty promises by a number of startups – all based on very exciting, but also preliminary, technical analysis of how efficiently algae could be used to turn sunlight, water and fertiliser into fuel. Unfortunately, those promises gave way to delays, then frustration, and finally outright scepticism on whether the fuels would ever work.

“Yet over the past ten years, the algae industry has quietly been overcoming the hurdles. There has been no single breakthrough to make headlines. Instead, dozens of new innovations across the board have improved efficiencies, streamlined processing and boosted production facilities. This iterative technical progress is showing real results. The emergence of algae as a highly productive, innovative agricultural crop offers an opportunity of scalability and carbon efficiency that is poised to make a dent.

“Beyond pure yield, the biomass composition of algae feedstocks, with over 50% of its weight as carbon, becomes an attractive feedstock for the production of fatty acid and ethanol-derived SAF. Based on a recent resource and sustainability assessment of nationwide algae production potential, projections estimate that over 20 billion gallons of SAF could be produced across a collection of 1,000 large algae farms, considering highly productive agricultural deployment across non-arable land.”

Photo: In 2011, United Airlines operated the first commercial flight to use algae in its fuel

Christopher Surgenor

Editor

• Linkedin

United Airlines, the world’s third largest carrier, has created a dedicated investment vehicle to support start-up businesses focused on sustainable aviation fuel. The United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund is designed to help accelerate research, production and technologies linked to SAF, the main and most available means to reduce flight carbon emissions. The fund has been launched with more than $100 million in investments from Boeing, GE Aerospace, aero technology company Honeywell and global finance house JP Morgan Chase, as well as Air Canada, a key member, with United, of the Star Alliance airline group. United has also refined its booking website and app to show customers the estimated carbon footprint of flights they are considering and provide options for them to contribute to the new fund.

“This is unique,” commented Scott Kirby, United’s CEO, on the Sustainable Flight Fund. “It’s not about offsets or things that are just greenwashing. We’re creating a system that drives investment to build a new industry around sustainable aviation fuel, essentially from scratch. That’s the only way we can actually decarbonise aviation.”  

United says it aims to be “100% green” by reducing its greenhouse gas emissions “100% by 2050”, without the use of conventional carbon offsets, which Kirby has long rejected as ineffective in cutting aviation’s carbon emissions.

The airline’s technology investment vehicle, United Airlines Ventures (UAV), has backed 11 companies including emerging SAF producers, manufacturers of zero emission aircraft or propulsion systems, and a battery business focused on electrifying airport ground equipment and future electric aircraft.

Some SAF-related investments will be moved from UAV to the new platform to kick-start its portfolio. United has committed to the future production of 3 billion gallons of SAF, “the most of any airline in the world,” and equivalent to the 2030 baseline production goal set by the US government in its SAF Grand Challenge programme.

“United has already made investments in or signed purchase agreements with companies using a variety of ingredients and technologies to produce SAF, including feedstocks like ethanol, animal by-products, forestry and crop waste, and municipal waste, as well as early-stage, promising technologies like synthetic biology and power-to-liquids,” the airline said. “The UAV Sustainable Flight Fund is open to investment by corporations across industries and the fund will prioritise investment in new technology, advanced fuel sources and proven producers, all in an effort to scale the supply of SAF.”

UAV has already supported five emergent SAF producers: Fulcrum Bioenergy, which is converting landfill waste to fuel; Alder Fuels, which will use biomass feedstock; Cemvita and Dimensional Energy, which will convert carbon dioxide to SAF; and Next Renewable Fuels, which recycles organic waste including used cooking oil.

As well as inviting more corporations to participate in the new investment fund, United is also looking to its passengers for support, becoming the first US carrier to highlight the indicative carbon footprint of every flight searched on the airline’s website or booking app, and providing the option for customers to contribute to the SAF fund as part of the booking process, with contribution levels set at $1.00, a default price of $3.50, and $7.00.

“Green shading will indicate a lower-carbon option on a per-economy seat passenger basis in a customer’s chosen itinerary,” the airline explained. “A flight’s carbon footprint is measured in kg CO2e – kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent – and United’s estimates, which could differ from actual flight emissions, are based on aircraft type, flying time, seat capacity and the number of people and cargo on a given flight.

“The default option for customer contributions is set at $3.50 to illustrate the potential impact of customer action at scale. If the 152 million people who flew on United in 2022 each contributed just $3.50 to the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund, that would be enough to design and build a SAF refinery capable of producing as much as 40 million gallons of alternative fuel annually.”

In addition to SAF producers, UAV has invested in Swedish electric aircraft start-up Heart Aerospace, air taxi manufacturers Archer Aviation and Eve Air Mobility, and hydrogen-electric powertrain manufacturer ZeroAvia, whose prototype engine is now being flight tested in the UK. Late last year, it invested in US-based battery manufacturer Natron Energy, a company with potential to help United electrify airport ground equipment, including airside tractors, and future electric aircraft such as air taxis.  

United also operates the Eco-Skies Alliance, a SAF corporate purchasing programme.

Photo: United Airlines

In its largest direct investment in sustainable aviation fuels yet, United Airlines Ventures has formed a $50 million joint venture – Blue Blade Energy – with Tallgrass and Green Plains to develop and then commercialise a novel SAF technology that uses ethanol as its feedstock. If the technology, which has been developed by researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), proves successful then construction of a pilot facility is expected to proceed in 2024, followed by a full-scale facility that could begin commercial operations by 2028. Once operational, Blue Blade Energy has the potential to create United’s largest source of SAF by providing up to 135 million gallons annually, said Michael Leskinen, President of United Airlines Ventures, the airline’s corporate venture arm. As well as agreeing to purchase up to 2.7 billion gallons of SAF produced by the joint venture in total, United will assist with SAF development, fuel certification and into-wing logistics.

“The production and use of SAF is the most effective and scalable tool the airline industry has to reduce carbon emissions and United continues to lead the way,” said Leskinen. “This new joint venture includes two expert collaborators that have the experience to construct and operate large-scale infrastructure, as well as the feedstock supply necessary for success.”

The offtake agreement could provide for enough unblended SAF to fly more than 50,000 flights annually between United’s hub airports in Chicago and Denver, said the airline.

Under the collaboration, energy infrastructure company Tallgrass will manage research and development of the PNNL technology, including pilot plant development, and will manage the construction of the production facility.

“At Tallgrass, we are striving to innovate how we deliver the energy that powers our nation and enables our quality of life,” said Alison Nelson, VP Business Development. “Air travel uniquely connects people and improves lives, and the advancement of this novel SAF technology presents a meaningful opportunity to reduce emissions from aviation.”

If the technology is commercialised, Green Plains will supply the low-carbon ethanol feedstock for Blue Blade Energy from its Midwest ethanol production facilities. While the initial SAF facility intends to use ethanol, the technology has the capability to work with any alcohol-based feedstock as its feedstock, added the company.

Having started operations in Iowa in 2007, Omaha-headquartered Green Plains has 11 biorefineries throughout the United States, processing 300 million bushels of corn per year and capacity to produce nearly 1 billion gallons of low-carbon biofuels annually.

“Our transformation to a true decarbonised biorefinery model has positioned Green Plains to help our customers and partners reduce the carbon intensity of their products by producing low-carbon proteins, oils, sugars and now decarbonised ethanol to be used in SAF,” said the company’s CEO, Todd Becker. “The potential impact of this project is a gamechanger for US agriculture, aligning a strong farm economy and a robust aviation transport industry focused on decarbonising our skies.”

In September 2022, Green Plains, Tallgrass and PNNL were awarded funding from the US Department of Energy to support development of the PNNL technology, which converts cellulosic and corn ethanol to SAF via ketone intermediates. Green Plains and Tallgrass currently hold the option to exclusively license the technology globally.

“New alcohol-to-jet pathways are necessary to achieve the ambitious volume targets for SAF, and our rapidly-evolving biorefinery platform is well positioned to help meet and exceed these targets,” said Becker. “Our collaboration with Tallgrass and our work with PNNL on state -of-the-art technologies positions Green Plains at the forefront of SAF commercialisation, which is supported by the expansion of policy to economically develop and deploy novel SAF technology.”

Photo: United Airlines

United Airlines Ventures (UAV), the sustainability-focused investment vehicle of United Airlines, is investing up to $37.5 million in NEXT Renewable Fuels, a Houston-based company which is building a biofuels refinery in Port Westward, Oregon, and targeting production from 2026. The deal is the fifth investment made by United’s ventures fund in sustainable aviation fuels technology. The airline says it is the first direct investment by a major US carrier in a renewable fuel biorefinery. Subject to environmental approvals, the NEXT plant expects to produce up to 750 million gallons per year, or 50,000 barrels per day, of SAF, renewable diesel and other fuels. For UAV, a key attraction of the refinery, NEXT’s first project, is its proximity to multi-modal transport infrastructure, including a deepwater port and facilities, which provides easy access to fuel feedstock supplies and distribution to high-demand markets on the US West Coast, where multiple SAF supply deals have recently been signed with corporate, domestic and international air operators. 

Supplies of SAF are both scarce and expensive, currently costing at least three times as much as conventional aviation fuel. The US government, in its recently-released SAF Grand Challenge Roadmap, forecast domestic aviation demand for 3 billion gallons of SAF by 2030 and 35 billion gallons by 2050 – with just 5 million gallons produced last year – and announced a range of incentives to expedite the development of infrastructure and new renewable fuel types.   

“Right now, one of the biggest barriers to increasing supply and lowering costs of sustainable fuel is that we don’t have the infrastructure in place to transport it efficiently,” said Michael Leskinen, President of United Airlines Ventures. “NEXT’s strategic location and assets solve that problem and provide a blueprint for future facilities that need to be built. We believe this investment will not only bolster NEXT’s ambitions and create near-term solutions to expand our SAF supply, but further demonstrates our commitment towards producing SAF at the scale necessary to decarbonise the aviation industry.”

NEXT has an agreement with BP to source 100% of its feedstock for renewable fuels, significantly reducing supply risks faced by smaller facilities, and has received an air quality permit from the State of Oregon. Construction of the new plant is expected to begin once an Environmental Impact Statement is completed by the US Army Corps of Engineers. Once the facility is completed and operating, NEXT says it has potential to scale up SAF production and to deploy additional future technologies for renewable fuels.

“The clean fuels industry is taking off and our access to feedstocks, multi-modal distribution and major industry players positions us to be a leading SAF supplier of the West Coast,” said NEXT’s CEO, Christopher Efird. “United’s investment in NEXT strengthens our resolve to be one of the clean fuels leaders in the transportation sector.”

Scott Kirby, United’s CEO, has resisted the use of traditional carbon offsets in meeting its net zero by 2050 goal, preferring to decarbonise “not with flashy, empty gestures, but by taking the harder, better path of actually reducing emissions from flying.” Of UAV’s role as an aviation investment fund focused on sustainability and technology, Kirby said: “We realise there’s a limit to what a single company can do alone. That’s why we are continuing to seek opportunities to collaborate with other industries. We must reach across industries to develop coordinated efforts to accomplish what must be our collective goal of carbon neutrality.”   

Prior to the NEXT investment, which is subject to achievement of specific milestone targets, United or UAV had announced investments in or partnerships with emerging SAF developers and suppliers Fulcrum BioEnergy, Dimensional Energy, Cemvita Factory and Alder Fuels, as well as the Swedish electric plane manufacturer Heart Aerospace, hydrogen propulsion pioneer ZeroAvia and electric air taxi developers Archer and Eve Air Mobility.

The airline is also one of the biggest buyers of SAF, with multiple major offset deals, and last year became the first to operate a commercial flight with 100% SAF in one engine – a Boeing 737 Max 8 service from Chicago to Washington DC. As well, through its Eco-Skies Alliance programme, 30 of the airline’s corporate customers have collectively purchased more than 7 million gallons of SAF to further help fund the fuel while offsetting the carbon emissions of their corporate air travel.

Image: United Airlines

United Airlines Ventures (UAV) has announced an investment in New York-based Dimensional Energy, the airline group’s fourth move into sustainable aviation fuel production, and its first into power-to-liquid (PtL) technology, in which carbon dioxide is transformed into SAF. United has also agreed to purchase at least 300 million gallons of SAF from Dimensional over 20 years, adding to multiple existing agreements that the airline claims add up to the biggest collective SAF commitment by any airline. The deal caps off a flurry of fresh SAF announcements across the US, from Hawaii to New York, as the air transport industry intensifies efforts to cut its carbon emissions. A project involving Delta Air Lines and Neste is now delivering SAF through fuel pipeline systems direct to New York LaGuardia. Meanwhile, there have been renewed calls from across the US aviation sector for greater government incentives to expedite and increase the availability of affordable supplies of SAF, reports Tony Harrington.

Dimensional Energy converts carbon dioxide and water into usable ingredients for the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) process that can turn those elements and others into liquid fuels. While this system has been widely used to create fossil fuels, Dimensional claims it will be one of the first to produce sustainable aviation fuels from the process. Last year, the company’s activities attracted funding from climate technology investor Elemental Excelerator, through which it was introduced to United, which wants to cut emissions directly rather than through offsets.

“Sometimes you have to look to the past to solve new problems and we recognise that decarbonising air travel is going to require combining proven technologies, such as Fischer-Tropsch, with the latest advances in science and engineering,” said United Airlines Ventures President Michael Leskinen. “As we grow our portfolio of companies like Dimensional, we are creating opportunities to scale these early-stage technologies and achieve United’s commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050, without the use of traditional carbon offsets.”

UAV has already invested in SAF producer Alder Fuels, from which United Airlines will acquire up to 1.5 billion gallons of SAF, while United itself has bought into Fulcrum Bioenergy, together with an option to buy up to 900 million gallons of SAF. As well, UAV recently invested in Cemvita Factory, a US-based synthetic biology company which is planning SAF production.

Dimensional says it can transform carbon dioxide from sources including direct emissions from industrial sites, direct air capture and biological paths including fermentation and biomass gasification, providing United with some protection from the constraints of feedstock availability affecting other biofuel pathways. Last year, in Tucson, Arizona, the company began constructing a CO2-to-fuels facility, part-powered by locally-produced renewable energy, and expects to begin operating next month.

”United’s support of sustainable aviation fuel made from captured emissions is an important step in the aviation industry’s pursuit of carbon neutrality,” said Jason Salfi, CEO and joint founder of Dimensional Energy. “We envision a world run on truly conflict-free energy that can scale to meet the global demand for hydrocarbon fuels and feedstocks.”

Meanwhile, competitor Delta Air Lines was one of four participants in a milestone project to deliver the first supplies of SAF to New York’s LaGuardia Airport using existing infrastructure. The fuel was processed in Texas by waste-to-SAF producer Neste, then transported via the Colonial and Buckeye pipeline systems to the airport to power a Delta flight. “SAF is the most effective tool we have to decarbonise our industry,” said Delta’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Pamela Fletcher. “These efforts show how existing infrastructure can be used to transport SAF to east coast airports and drive down emissions, a critical step as we move toward a more sustainable future for air travel.”   

The fuel was loaded by Neste into the Colonial Pipeline and pumped almost 1,500 miles to New Jersey, where it was transferred into the Buckeye Pipeline which feeds LaGuardia Airport. “The US east coast is home to some of the USA’s busiest airports and the vast majority of them get their fuel from the Colonial Pipeline system and, in New York, the Buckeye Pipeline system,” added Chris Cooper, Neste’s VP of Renewable Aviation in the Americas. “What we’re doing here is showing that just around the corner is a future where passengers at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson, up to LaGuardia, JFK (Kennedy Airport) and EWR (Newark Airport) can board a plane flying on SAF.”

Delta and Neste have called for additional government policy settings and supply chain incentives in the US to increase production pf SAF, while driving down its cost. Announcing the LaGuardia initiative, they said: “A SAF Blender’s Tax Credit, for example, that is technology and raw material-neutral, will even the playing field between SAF and fossil jet fuel. At the state level, a Low Carbon Fuel Standard with voluntary opt-in provisions for SAF will provide a policy framework with a proven track record to incentivise SAF production and speed the development of cleaner infrastructure, supporting healthier environments for our communities.”

In Los Angeles, alongside the IX Summit of the Americas, at a roundtable event they hosted on sustainable air transport, industry body IATA and Boeing also ramped up pressure on governments to support SAF production with incentives.

”To reach the industry’s net zero goal, governmental support is critical to developing policies that efficiently accelerate the commercial production and deployment of SAF,” said Peter Cerdá, IATA’s Regional VP for the Americas.

Landon Loomis, Boeing’s VP Latin America, Caribbean and Global Policy, added: “The message from the experts at the roundtable is clear. In addition to a sector-wide partnership, it takes policy commitments, technology deployment and infrastructure efficiency improvements to achieve the industry’s commitment to reach decarbonisation by mid-century.”

Corresponding with the event, Boeing and seven airlines – Aeromexico, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, COPA Airlines, Delta, United and WestJet – collectively bought 100,000 gallons of SAF (379,000 litres) from World Energy to part-power flights from Los Angeles International Airport, collectively cutting their CO2 emissions by around 472,000 pounds (214.3 tonnes).

In a message to the roundtable, John Kerry, US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, said: “Reducing emissions from hard to decarbonise sectors like aviation is essential to tackling climate change. I am encouraged by the commitment of airlines worldwide to scale up the use of sustainable aviation fuels, which have the potential to not only significantly reduce emissions in-sector but also to provide economic opportunity.”

As part of its 2022 ecoDemonstrator programme, Boeing will fly one of its own 777-200ER aircraft using a 30/70 SAF blend for all test flights. During the next six months of flight and ground tests, Boeing will evaluate around 30 new technologies aimed at improving sustainability and safety for the aerospace industry, including a water conservation system to reduce aircraft weight and fuel, and technologies to improve operational efficiency.

Separately in Honolulu, Hawaiian Airlines announced a partnership with Par Hawaii, one of the state’s largest energy providers, to explore the viability of developing SAF in the islands from sustainable crops, while in Houston, Texas, renewable energy start-up No Carbon Air announced plans to produce sustainable aviation fuel, hydrogen fuel, and other green energy sources through Fischer-Tropsch conversion of landfill materials including municipal solid waste, hazardous materials, tyres, waste coal, sludges and other waste streams. The company’s CEO, Bill Smith, said the waste, once converted to synthetic gas, would be processed through an FT system capable of producing 3,000 gallons of sustainable jet fuel per day, or 1 million gallons per year.

Photo: United Airlines