The Biden administration set a goal in 2021 for the U.S. to produce 3 billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) annually by 2030.
Thus far this year 14 million gallons have been produced domestically.
Jimmy Samartzis, CEO of LanzaJet, a local company that coverts ethanol into SAF and renewable diesel, thinks that Chicago could play an important role in bridging that gap.
An alternative fuel made from non-petroleum feedstocks, SAF is considered a key component in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, as aviation accounts for 2% of all carbon dioxide emissions and 12% of all carbon dioxide emissions from transportation, according to the Department of Energy.
Samartzis said the federal government and airline industry have a ways to go in terms of investment and building out infrastructure to accelerate the development and deployment of SAF.
"The next handful of years are all going to be about getting technology deployed," he told Chicago Inno.
LanzaJet was one of 40 companies and organizations that joined the Sustainable Aviation Fuel coalition, announced this week, with the goal of rapidly scaling investment in the SAF sector as well as advocate for incentives and policies necessary to build the marketplace.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration furthered its commitment to SAF this week by incentivizing its production in an effort to cut aviation sector emissions.
Chicago could be in a unique position to step up and play an important role in this transition, said Samartzis, because LanzaJet's technology uses ethanol as the starting point to make SAF.
"Illinois is a phenomenal state with strong ethanol production assets and a strong agriculture community that can really capitalize on being at the tip of the spear in terms of developing the SAF industry," he said. "With our technology, which uses ethanol, the Midwest is the source of the feedstock, and you want to be doing this close to the source of the feedstock. So a state like Illinois is in the prime position to capitalize on that, [as is] Chicago in particular, having been a historic transportation hub."
Microsoft recently announced a new investment into the Chicago-based sustainable fuel startup through its Climate Innovation Fund, a $1 billion fund designed to invest in emerging climate tech solutions that have early commercial traction. It follows a $50 million investment the fund made in 2022 to help build the world's first ethanol SAF plant in Georgia.
"This investment is different because it's not at the asset level. It will be used to accelerate LanzaJet growth," Samartzis said.
The new investment is part of an ongoing $100 million raise LanzaJet is hoping to complete this summer.
LanzaJet plans to add anywhere from 60 to 100 new employees in 2024, 80% of which Samartzis estimates will be based in Chicago.
