Calumet Inc. announced on May 9 that its Montana Renewables biorefinery will reach between 120 million and 150 million gallons per year (MMgy) of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) capacity earlier than expected—and at significantly lower cost, reports Biodiesel Magazine.
Montana Renewables, a subsidiary of Calumet, had originally planned to bring half of its proposed 300 MMgy SAF capacity online by 2026 as part of its MaxSAF initiative, with full completion targeted for 2028. That first phase was expected to cost between $150 million and $250 million.
However, during a first-quarter earnings call, Calumet CEO Todd Borgmann announced a major shift in plans. He said the company now expects to bring 120 MMgy to 150 MMgy of SAF capacity online by early 2026 at a capital cost of just $20 million to $30 million.
Borgmann attributed the accelerated timeline and reduced cost to progress made by Calumet’s operations team in optimizing the company’s assets and SAF technology. Instead of waiting for the delivery and installation of a new reactor, the company plans to enhance its existing reactor and supporting infrastructure in Montana. These improvements, primarily involving catalyst upgrades and equipment reconfiguration, are expected to boost SAF output from 2,000 barrels per day to between 8,000 and 10,000 barrels per day.
The overall goal of reaching 300 MMgy of SAF capacity by 2028 remains unchanged.
The MaxSAF project received a conditional commitment for a $1.44 billion loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy in October 2024 to support the expansion, which also includes plans to produce 30 MMgy of renewable diesel.
In financial results, the Montana Renewables segment reported $3.3 million in adjusted EBITDA with tax attributes for the first quarter of this year, a sharp improvement from the $13.4 million loss in the same period last year. The figure includes $16.9 million in production tax credits, which are now included in adjusted EBITDA to reflect changes in tax credit reporting.
