Topsoe Enters SAF JV with Sasol and Signs Agreement with Steeper Energy on Waste-to-Fuel Technology

by Christopher Surgenor (GreenAir Online) Danish decarbonisation technology solutions company Topsoe has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with South Africa-based global energy and chemicals company Sasol with the intent to establish a 50/50 joint venture to develop sustainable aviation fuel production. The JV aims to build, own and operate ventures producing SAF based on Sasol’s Fischer-Tropsch technology and Topsoe’s own relevant SAF technologies. It will produce SAF derived from non-fossil feedstock, utilising green hydrogen, sustainable sources of CO2 and/or biomass. The companies say their unique and complementary technologies offer multiple pathways to SAF production at scale.

Topsoe has also signed a global licensing agreement with Steeper Energy for Steeper’s Hydrofaction technology, used for converting biomass to renewable biocrude oil. With the agreement, Topsoe will be able to provide a complete waste-to-fuel technology solution, with end products including SAF, marine biofuel and renewable diesel. READ MORE

Excerpt from Biofuels Digest: The rationale: With aviation being responsible for 3% of global carbon emissions, low carbon solutions are urgently needed; and, existing project developers have been moving slowly — combination of factors there, policy is tine on the problem-fork, yet capital and technology integration are the others. We’ll form the guess that Topsoe and Sasol have concluded that airlines are extremely willing if the price is right, and they might as well shift from strict licensing to a hybrid of licensing and build/own/operate.

What exactly is Sasol’s ecoFT?

It’s more than just a Fischer Tropsch tech suite.

There’s Power-to-X technology, which generally means splitting water using excess renewable power capacity. More about that here.

It’s fantastic news, of course

I think I have an insight now how the citizens of Rome felt on the day that Michelangelo was tapped to paint the Sistine Chapel. Fortunately, it’s great news, Unfortunately, they’ll need time, perhaps a lot of it; it will be worth it in the end, but I’d say that nothing will be finished by Saturday. Sunday isn’t too good either. And the partners will not escape the Digest’s Iron Law of Feedstock, which reads:

Sustainable, affordable, abundant, pick any two of three.

Lots of work to do

The MoU establishes the exploration effort that might lead to a JV with Sasol. MOUs usually lead to LOIs and to agreements, not always — the bigger the company, the more likely that agreements come from MOUs because large companies get shy about announcing MOUs unless they are pretty darn serious.

Having said that, there are, ahem, just a few things beyond technology integration, willing customers and willing partners to consider. Some say the devil is in the details, some say God is in the details, but for sure The Digest can say that the liters are in the details. The partners have yet to finalize feedstock choice or supply, timeline and planned capacity. And, urgent as those are, it’s not the “Job on Day One” for this venture — the partners say they are currently focused on “business plan development, setting up the JV structure and organization, and finalizing the JV agreement.”

In short, it’s a long walk to energy freedom. READ MORE