The 60-acre facility will revolutionize the global aviation industry by providing a scalable supply of low-carbon jet fuel.
Iowa-based Summit Agricultural Group subsidiary Summit Next Gen, a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production platform, has announced that it will set up the world’s largest ethanol-to-jet (ETJ) SAF facility at Houston Ship Channel in Texas.
The 60-acre facility will revolutionize the global aviation industry by providing a scalable supply of low-carbon jet fuel.
The purchase and sale agreement for the site also provides Summit Next Gen with an exclusive option to purchase an additional 40-acre contiguous tract, which would enable capital-efficient expansions as SAF demand continues to grow.
Building the massive lego like Fehmarnbelt Tunnel.
250 million gallons of SAF per year
The global aviation industry demands over 100 billion gallons of jet fuel annually and is expected to double in the next 20 years with increasing passenger demand.
Governments, companies, and consumers are demanding low-carbon alternatives to traditional jet fuel; however, the current production of SAF still needs to be challenged by the undersupply of feedstocks consisting of vegetable oils, animal fats, and waste oils.
With its new facility, Summit Next Gen aims to produce 250 million gallons of SAF annually.
Through the project, Summit Next Gen aims to create an additional market for low-carbon ethanol producers and advance the sustainability goals of the difficult-to-decarbonize aviation industry.
Honeywell ETJ technology
Summit Next Gen will utilize Honeywell’s ETJ technology to convert low-carbon ethanol into SAF.
The Honeywell ETJ process is ready now and allows producers to convert ethanol produced from various sources, including corn, sugar, and cellulosic material, among others, into SAF.
Depending on the ethanol feedstock, SAF produced with the Honeywell ETJ process can reduce GHG emissions by 80% on a total lifecycle basis compared to petroleum-based jet fuel.
Honeywell will provide related engineering and technical services, equipment, catalysts and adsorbents, and technical support services for start-up and throughout the plant’s life.
Honeywell’s ETJ technology can be modularized off-site, enabling lower installed costs and faster, less labor-intensive installation than job-site construction in many cases.
Commence operations by 2027
Summit Next Gen has raised all the required capital to advance its project to a final investment decision (FID), expected in 2025.
Justin Kirchhoff, CEO of Summit Agricultural Group, said the company expects FID by mid-2025 and will commence operations in the plant in 2027.
Demand for SAF continues to grow to help the aviation industry accelerate its decarbonization efforts.
In 2021, the Biden Administration announced its SAF Grand Challenge for the US aviation fuel supply sector: Produce at least three billion gallons of SAF per year by 2030 and reduce aviation emissions by 20%, with an eventual goal of meeting 100% of US aviation fuel demand with SAF by 2050.
The European Council released its ReFuelEU Aviation rules as part of the ‘Fit for 55’ package, which aims to increase the share of sustainable fuels at EU airports from a minimum of 2% in 2025 to 70% by 2050.
These and other incentives, including the Inflation Reduction Act, accelerate the need for alternative SAF feedstocks to meet demand.
SAF is nearly identical to petroleum-based jet fuel and can be used as a drop-in replacement without engine modifications in blends up to 50% currently.