Topsoe, Sasol bring advanced SAF technology to Allied Biofuels’ landmark project in Uzbekistan

Photo: Tospoe

Topsoe announced July 14 that it and Sasol have signed a licensing and engineering agreement with Allied Biofuels to deliver its sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) technology for production of eSAF (as a primary product) and biobased SAF to Allied Biofuels’ new facility in the Khorezm region of Uzbekistan.

When operational, Allied Biofuels’ facility is expected to produce approximately 300,000 tons of eSAF and SAF annually based on Topsoe and Sasol advanced G2L™ technology.

The facility is part of a broader integrated development that will generate more than 400,000 tons of aviation fuel in total.

Final-investment decision is expected in 2027, with full-scale commercial operations targeted for 2030.

Under the agreements, Topsoe and Sasol will provide the core technology license, engineering-design package and technical services for the project’s eSAF production pathway.

The facility will combine Topsoe’s advanced SynCOR™ technology with Sasol’s Fischer-Tropsch technology to produce high-quality SAF from a variety of feedstocks—including biomass, green hydrogen and carbon dioxide—creating a highly flexible and integrated production pathway.

“This agreement marks a significant milestone for Topsoe as this is our first eSAF project in Uzbekistan," said Yassir Ghiyati, Topsoe’s chief commercial officer at Topsoe. "The Allied Biofuels facility brings together best-in-class technologies from Topsoe and Sasol to produce SAF with a variety of feedstock enhancing operations resilience. This commercial-scale facility will help cater for the rapidly evolving global need for a variety of fuels for the aviation industry. We believe that projects like this will play an important role in driving the ramp up of SAF across key markets, such as Europe and the Middle East.”

Sarushen Pillay, an executive with Sasol, added, “The selection of Sasol for this landmark project reflects the confidence that customers place in our proven Fischer-Tropsch technology and our ability to deliver at commercial scale. Building on the operational success of our world-scale XTL facilities and more than 30 years of collaboration with Topsoe, we bring together deep technology expertise, global execution experience and a fully integrated licensing solution. Together, we are enabling projects that not only deliver superior product yields and strong economics but also help increase the growth of SAF production capacity and accelerate the global energy transition."

Alfred Benedict, the managing director at Allied Biofuels, said, “Securing world-class technology from Topsoe and Sasol is a defining milestone for Allied Biofuels’ Uzbekistan project. These agreements strengthen our engineering and execution pathway and are central to Allied Biofuels’ development of a globally competitive clean-fuels platform capable of contributing to the aviation sector’s growing need for credible, scalable SAF and eSAF.”

The agreements mark a major technology milestone for Allied Biofuels’ $6.1 billion integrated clean-fuels development in the Khorezm region.

The project is being developed as one of Central Asia’s most significant aviation-fuel platforms, combining large-scale clean-energy integration, advanced fuel-conversion technologies and international engineering expertise to support the production of next-generation aviation fuels for domestic, regional and international markets.

This project comes at a time of rapidly growing demand for SAF, alongside expanding regulation and incentives for its production and deployment.

The EU's ReFuelEU aviation regulation requires fuel suppliers to deliver a 1.2 percent share of eSAF in all EU airports by 2030, rising to 35 percent by 2050.

SynCOR™ technology is Topsoe’s proprietary technology based on advanced autothermal reforming principles.

Supported by a track record of over 35 years of proven reliability and safe, continuous operation. SynCOR™ is the preferred technology for a wide range of commercial-scale reforming solutions due to its maturity and competitive capital and operating costs.

The G2L™ eFuels process is an end-to-end single-point licensing solution enabling the conversion of renewable feedstocks like gasified biomass or captured CO2 and hydrogen to eFuels.

It combines and integrates technologies from Topsoe and Sasol to optimize hydrogen utilization, minimize carbon footprint, maximize yields and provide a reliable solution.

The process is fully wrapped by Sasol and Topsoe in a single-point license.