Axens acquires stake in BioTJet industrial project for SAF production in France

Photo: Axens

Axens has acquired a stake in the BioTJet project, the aim of which is to build and operate the largest European sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production unit using the Fischer-Tropsch process, relying on the BioTfueL® technology.

This unit will be built in France and started up by 2027.

BioTfueL® is an advanced biofuel production technology using the thermochemical route, developed and proven within the framework of the eponymous project from 2010 to 2021.

The BioTfueL® process includes Gasel®, a technology suite licensed by Axens, used to produce high-quality renewable fuels by the Fischer-Tropsch process.

Within the framework of the BioTJet project, Axens is surrounded by its partners—Elyse Energy, Avril, IFP Energies nouvelles through its investment subsidiary IFP Investissements, and Bionext—and is thus part of the European energy-transition strategy in line with the ambitious objectives of decarbonization of the aviation sector.

Axens is supporting the development of the BioTJet project above and beyond the conventional role of licensor and equipment, catalyst and adsorbent supplier by becoming a shareholder and partner of the BioTJet project company.

Axens’ equity investment in an industrial-scale project marks a key milestone for the commercial development of BioTfueL®.

The BioTJet project will make it possible to process a broad spectrum of lignocellulosic biomass, which do not compete with food uses, in a chain combining torrefaction, gasification and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis for the production of SAF and byproducts such as sustainable naphtha.

The BioTJet project has received support from ADEME (the French Agency for Ecological Transition) as part of the France 2030’s 4th Investments for the Future Program, through a call for proposals for the “Development of a French Sustainable Aviation Fuel production sector.”

A final investment decision is expected by the end of 2024 for start-up by 2027.

“The transition to a low-carbon world requires immediate, large-scale action while meeting the constraints of the sectors the most difficult to decarbonize, such as industry and heavy mobility,” said Pascal Pénicaud, co-founder and CEO of Elyse Energy. “The BioTJet project provides an immediate response to decarbonization challenges in the aviation sector as it can replace fossil fuels without having to significantly modify existing infrastructures and engine systems.”

Axens CEO Jean Sentenac added, “I see our participation in the BioTJet project as a long-term commitment to our partners. Our investment in this large-scale French industrial project shows Axens’ strong commitment to the industrial development of technologies essential to the energy transition.”