Wagner Sustainable Fuels is developing a new sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) plant in Queensland, Australia after signing contracts with carbon recycling company LanzaTech and SAF manufacturer LanzaJet to equip the Brisbane SAF Refinery with CirculAir technology.
The project is backed by aircraft manufacturing giant Boeing and has also received A$760k ($511k) from the Queensland government as Australia continues to support development of a local SAF industry.
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Wagner Sustainable Fuels CEO Matt Doyle said development of the plant came as Australia looked for a new sustainable supply chain to cover the expected 75% increase in demand for jet fuel in the country over the next 25 years.
He said: “Australia is in a strong position to produce and scale renewable liquid fuels to meet this challenge and grow a domestic low carbon fuels industry.”
The CirculAir system to be installed at the plant uses LanzaTech’s carbon recycling technology to convert local waste streams into ethanol before LanzaJet’s Alcohol-to-Jet (ATJ) system converts the ethanol into drop-in SAF.
Wagner’s Brisbane refinery becomes the latest in the region to announce its use of the ATJ technology since Qantas, Airbus and the Queensland government announced their investment into the first ATJ SAF plant in Queensland last year.
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By GlobalDataJennifer Holmgren, CEO of LanzaTech and board chair at LanzaJet, said: “The flexibility of the CirculAir platform makes it possible for this project to unlock carbon from the myriad waste-based resources available in Australia to meet local demand.”
The plant, described as the first fully integrated SAF production facility in Australia, is expected to begin construction in 2026 and will produce 102 million litres of SAF per year once fully operational.
In addition to supporting the decarbonisation of aviation in Australia, Wagner also highlighted its importance to strengthening the country’s fuel security, with Australia currently importing 90% of all its liquid fuel supplies.
Development of a local SAF industry has become a priority for Australia’s aviation industry and is backed by government at all levels, with the national government launching a A$30m ($20m) SAF funding initiative in 2023 to support pilot scale and pre-commercial demonstrations of SAF production.
Use of the fuel has been highlighted as a key part of the industry’s efforts to reach net zero emissions by 2050 thanks to its reduction in carbon emissions of up to 80% compared to traditional jet fuel, though airlines have struggled with the availability and price of SAF around the world.
