Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) startup OXCCU has inaugurated its first official demonstration plant, OX1, at Oxford Airport in the UK, with operations set to begin in September 2024.
As per press rlease, this facility will be the world’s first to showcase “the direct conversion of CO2 and H2 into jet fuel-range hydrocarbons in a single step with minimal oxygenated byproducts using OXCCU’s innovative catalyst.” Initially, it will produce approximately 1kg of liquid OXEFUEL fuel per day.
Differing from other players in the power-to-liquid (PtL) SAF sector, OXCCU, a climate tech spin-out from the University of Oxford, employs a patented single-step process to transform carbon dioxide and hydrogen into long-chain hydrocarbons. This approach offers “significantly lower capital and operational costs compared to other PtL SAF methods.”
As OXCCU expands, the data and experience gained from this initial plant will guide the design and construction of a second facility, OX2, which will produce 160kg of fuel per day at Saltend Chemical Park, Hull, starting in 2026. Further commercial-scale operations will follow.
OXCCU CEO Andrew Symes remarked, “The fuel we’ve already produced in the lab from CO2 in a single step has generated significant excitement for its potential to substantially lower SAF costs. Scaling up is crucial, and this plant will provide the data and fuel needed for that.” He emphasized that cost-effective PtL technology is vital for allowing “future generations to fly without climate impact,” concluding, “This launch is a significant step towards achieving that goal.”
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