Atoba Energy, Flying Forest sign LOI for long-term SAF offtake

Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) aggregation platform Atoba Energy announced Dec. 11 the signing of a letter of intent (LOI) with renewable fuel developer Flying Forest for a long-term SAF-offtake agreement.

The strategic partnership will support Flying Forest’s project in Finland while advancing Atoba’s mission to bridge the gap between SAF producers and airlines.

Flying Forest’s innovative project in Iisalmi, Finland, will convert local wood waste into SAF using advanced methanol-to-jet technology.

The facility is designed to produce 200,000 tons of SAF annually across three production lines with potential expansion to nearby sites.

The project leverages Finland’s abundant forestry residues, with Flying Forest securing agreements with local sawmills for up to 3.75 million tons of sawmill coproducts and noncommercial round wood annually.

This local-feedstock strategy ensures supply security while supporting the circular economy by utilizing waste materials that would otherwise have limited commercial value.

“Scaling SAF requires innovative commercial models that work for both producers and end customers,” said Paul Groves, the CEO of Flying Forest. “This collaboration with Atoba Energy builds the aligned ecosystem we need to drive innovation, catalyze investment and accelerate SAF deployment globally.”

The collaboration addresses a critical challenge in the SAF industry: the financial dilemma between producers needing stable long-term contracts to secure project financing and airlines seeking competitive, flexible pricing.

Atoba Energy said its aggregation model provides Flying Forest with bankable offtake commitments while offering airlines access to diversified SAF supply at competitive market rates.

“Flying Forest’s leading-edge technology enables a cost-efficient transformation of residues to SAF,” said Arnaud Namer, the CEO of Atoba Energy. “By adding Flying Forest to our aggregation platform, we can offer airlines price competitiveness and stability while providing Flying Forest the long-term commitments they need to reach final-investment decision.”