Jet Zero Australia adds Idemitsu as strategic shareholder, raises $19.1 million in funding

Masahiko Sawa with Idemitsu (Photo: Jet Zero Australia)

Jet Zero Australia Pty Ltd. announced March 12 that it has achieved a significant milestone by successfully receiving funding commitments of AUD$29 million (USD$19.1 million).

This is a crucial step towards advancing the engineering activities of Jet Zero Australia’s flagship alcohol-to-jet (ATJ) sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) project—Project Ulysses—in North Queensland, Australia.

Funding will also support advancement of other renewable fuel opportunities in the region, many of which will leverage and support Queensland’s globally competitive agricultural sector.

The placement, managed by Barrenjoey, has been strongly supported by Jet Zero Australia’s foundational investors, including Qantas and Airbus, who are committed to accelerating the establishment of the SAF industry in Australia.

Jet Zero Australia also announced the addition of a new strategic shareholder, Idemitsu Kosan Co. Ltd., one of Japan’s largest energy conglomerates.

This marks Idemitsu’s first SAF-project investment outside of Japan.

Project Ulysses, which has now completed a feasibility study initiated in 2022 with the backing of a AUD$760,000 (USD$501,000) grant from the Queensland government, and has recently applied for additional grant support from the federal government, which, if successful, will further assist the project’s continued development into front-end engineering and design (FEED).

Jet Zero Australia has also made an application to the Queensland government’s Industry Partnership Program to assist the project in moving toward a final-investment decision (FID), construction and operation of the facility.

Project Ulysses is targeting annual production of 102 million liters (27 million gallons) of SAF and 11 million liters (2.9 million gallons) of renewable diesel once operational.

“Idemitsu Kosan is working to establish SAF production in Japan with an annual capacity of 500 million liters (132 million gallons) in order to achieve the government and aviation industry’s goal of replacing 10 percent of Japan’s jet-fuel consumption with SAF by 2030,” said Masahiko Sawa with Idemitsu. “This investment agreement represents our first investment in an overseas SAF project and will contribute to the establishment and strengthening of the global SAF supply chain. Australia, especially Queensland, is an important business partner, and we hope to build a bridge between the two countries in the world of carbon neutrality in addition to the resources business.”

Jet Zero Australia CEO Ed Mason added, “Project Ulysses will play a very important role in the growing momentum towards decarbonizing the Australian aviation sector while providing fuel security and also developing a new industry in North Queensland. The ongoing support from Qantas and Airbus, two leaders in the Australian and international aviation sectors, as well as ongoing investment from our existing shareholders Chancery Hill, Dragonfly Enviro Capital and Audacy has remained crucial to the project’s success. We also welcome Idemitsu as a strategic shareholder with significant financial backing and capabilities in project development and renewable fuels. Alongside Qantas and Airbus, the addition of Idemitsu is a huge boost in our ability to fund the success and future development of our Australian SAF projects.”