American Airlines and Infinium have announced the first delivery of electro sustainable aviation fuel (eSAF) to a commercial airport for use on a commercial passenger flight, in what the companies describe as a major milestone in aviation decarbonization.
The eSAF was allocated to an American Airlines flight that departed Corpus Christi International Airport (CRP) and landed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). The fuel was produced and blended at Infinium’s Pathfinder facility in Corpus Christi – described as the world’s first commercial-scale power-to-liquids e-fuels production site, operating since 2023 – and blended with conventional jet fuel to meet the ASTM International specification for Jet A, certifying its use in current aircraft engines and fueling infrastructure without modification. The companies said it marked the first delivery of SAF made without biobased feedstocks to a commercial US airport.
Infinium’s eSAF is produced using waste CO2 and renewable electricity, and the company says it can reduce lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions by more than 90% compared with conventional petroleum-based jet fuel.
Robert Schuetzle, CEO of Infinium, said, “Since 2023, we have been producing scalable, drop-in eDiesel and eNaphtha at our Pathfinder facility from waste carbon and renewable energy for use in commercial trucks and plastics processing. Adding eSAF to our product slate – and seeing it power a commercial passenger flight – marks another meaningful step forward in bringing practical, low-carbon fuel solutions to industry.”
American has an offtake agreement for commercial volumes of eSAF from Infinium’s Project Roadrunner, financed by Breakthrough Energy Catalyst and Brookfield Asset Management with nonrecourse project debt from HSBC. The project is under construction and expected to begin eSAF production and deliveries in 2027, with capacity to produce more than five million gallons of eSAF annually once fully operational.
Robert Isom, American Airline’s CEO, said, “This flight represents a significant moment for aviation. Through our partnership with Infinium, we’re demonstrating how next generation technologies like eSAF can move from early investment to real-world application.”
Aviation currently consumes nearly 100 billion gallons of jet fuel annually, with sustainable aviation fuel accounting for less than 1% of total global jet fuel use, according to the companies.
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