The Department of Energy has announced a conditional $1.46 billion loan guarantee to Gevo for a large-scale corn starch-to-jet fuel facility.
It is the first such project to get a DOE loan commitment and is designed to help meet the Biden administration’s goal of reaching 3 billion gallons of domestic SAF production by 2030.
The Gevo Net-Zero 1 project is being built in Lake Preston, South Dakota, and intends to use purely domestic-sourced feedstocks. The facility is designed to produce about 60 million gallons of SAF, 1.3 billion pounds of protein and animal feed products and about 30 million pounds of corn oil annually.
Currently, domestic SAF production sits around 30 million gallons a year, meaning this facility has the potential to more than double 2023 U.S. SAF capacity. Through the administration’s SAF Grand Challenge, the goal is to produce 3 billion gallons of SAF domestically by 2030, and 35 billion gallons by 2050.
Many of the top airlines have committed to reach net zero by 2050, and are looking to SAF to reach those goals. In its announcement, DOE said the “drop-in nature” of Gevo’s fuel will aid in rapid adoption with “minimal or no modifications to existing engines or distribution and fueling infrastructure.”
Additionally, the facility is expected to produce this SAF with a net-zero carbon footprint on a lifecycle basis. The facility is expected to support rural economic development with an annual impact of over $100 million, including an estimated 1,300 indirect jobs in the construction phase and 100 permanent jobs at the plant.
“This marks a watershed moment for the Net-Zero 1 project and a critical step forward in Gevo’s mission to transform the aviation industry by providing a scalable, sustainable, and economical renewable-carbon-based jet fuel—SAF,” said Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber in a release.
As part of the company’s community engagement, Gevo has conducted outreach to local farmers who in total farm about 995 fields and 65,800 acres. These producers were included in Gevo’s GROWERS program, which is backed in part by USDA to incentivize the adoption of climate-smart practices.
DOE’s commitment is expected to reduce execution risk for obtaining the remaining equity investors, Gevo said in a release.
For more news, go to www.Agri-Pulse.com
