BA, LanzaJet and Nova Pangaea complete green competition hat-trick

British Airways, LanzaJet and Nova Pangaea Technologies have been shortlisted for funding from the UK's Department of Transport's Green Fuels, Green Skies (GFGS) competition to develop the UK's first sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production facility utilising UK wood waste.
The amount of waste wood processed in the UK increased by 6% to 3.98 million tonnes in 2019, according to the Wood Recyclers Association (WRA).
The Department for Transport's Green Fuels, Green Skies competition is part of the Prime Minister's Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution announced in November 2020.
The goal is to produce 100 million litres of sustainable fuel per year starting in 2025, to meet the large SAF supply-demand gap in the UK. The fuel produced would power 2,000 flights from London to New York operated by an A350 aircraft.
The integrated technology platform is based on Nova Pangaea's REFNOVA process of converting lignocellulosic feedstocks, such as waste wood and biomass, into sustainable biocarbon, biochemicals, biopolymers, and drop in for biofuels.
LanzaJet's alcohol-to-jet (ATJ) technology will convert the ethanol to Synthetic Paraffinic Kerosene (SPK) and Synthetic Paraffinic Diesel (SPD) to produce sustainable aviation fuel and renewable diesel.
Sean Doyle, British Airways Chairman and CEO, said: "We’re determined to transform the sustainability of our industry and this funding from the Government’s Green Fuels, Green Skies competition is critical in helping us to show the feasibility of building sustainable aviation fuel plants. These plants would be a game-changer for our industry, not only delivering sustainable aviation fuel but also creating many hundreds of highly skilled jobs while increasing economic growth around the UK.”
Jimmy Samartzis, LanzaJet CEO, said: "This project is vital to our mission in expanding SAF on a global basis to help it achieve net-zero.”
Sarah Ellerby, Nova Pangaea Technologies CEO, said: “In order to deliver the transport decarbonisation plan, we need to increase and accelerate investment in technologies that will deliver the net zero mandate. We want the UK to be a world leader in SAF and to do this we have to be ambitious and embrace innovation.”