The federal and Queensland state governments are joining forces to support a groundbreaking sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) project in Townsville, Queensland.
The initiative aims to convert ethanol derived from agricultural waste into jet fuel, marking a significant step towards reducing aviation emissions in Australia.
The $36.8 million project will develop a production facility in Townsville capable of producing approximately 110 million litres of low-carbon liquid fuels annually, including SAF and renewable diesel.
Jet Zero Australia is leading the project, with technology supplied by LanzaJet and key investors including Qantas, Airbus, and Idemitsu Kosan.
The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has committed $9 million to the project, while the Queensland government is contributing an additional $5 million through the Queensland New-Industry Development Strategy (QNIDS).
This funding will support a Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) study and further project development work to assess the viability of a commercial-scale alcohol-to-jet production facility.
Based on initial modelling, the Townsville plant could reduce net domestic aviation carbon emissions by 70 per cent compared to conventional fossil fuel use, potentially displacing up to 225,000 tonnes of CO2 annually.
This is particularly significant as domestic aviation accounts for about 2 per cent of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions and is considered a hard-to-abate sector.
According to ARENA’s Bioenergy Roadmap, a domestic SAF industry could be worth $10 billion in extra annual GDP and create up to 26,200 jobs by 2030, with regional Australia positioned to receive most of these new jobs.
The project is part of the Australian government’s $22.7 billion Future Made in Australia package, which aims to support the growth of new industries.
The 2024-25 Federal Budget also allocated $18.5 million over four years to develop a certification scheme for low-carbon liquid fuels and $1.5 million over two years for an impact analysis of demand-side measures for sustainable fuels.
The project’s FEED activities are due for completion in 2025, with Jet Zero Australia targeting production commencement by 2027.
This collaborative effort between federal and state governments, along with private sector partners, represents a significant step towards a more sustainable aviation industry in Australia, promising both environmental and economic benefits for the country.
