Boeing has invested an undisclosed sum in Norwegian fuel developer Norsk e-Fuel as part of an effort to promote increased production and availability of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
Boeing provides few details about the arrangement with Norsk. The US company calls the deal an “investment” and says it “has become a key project development partner” with the firm.
Oslo-based Norsk, which has also received funding from low-cost airline Norwegian, describes the agreement as an “off-take and product-support” partnership. Under off-take agreements, buyers agree to purchase at a future date a product that has yet to be produced.
Norsk is working to produce so-called “electro-SAF” through a “power-to-liquid” process that creates fuel from hydrogen and CO2.
Norsk intends, using energy derived from clean sources, to generate hydrogen. It also plans to “capture” CO2 from the air and other sources. It would use those ingredients to produce synthetic crude oil that can be refined into SAF. Norsk has previously said it intends to start full-scale production from 2026.
“Boeing’s investment will accelerate the production and availability of sustainable aviation fuel in the Nordics and globally,” the US manufacturer says. “Boeing’s investment will contribute to achieving the SAF volumes needed by the [European Union] commitments and strengthen national energy security across the Nordics.”
The economic and environmental feasibility of producing SAF using the power-to-liquid or similar processes remains uncertain. But other firms are seeking to make it happen, including Canada’s Carbon Engineering, which wants to produce SAF from CO2 pulled from the air.
In January last year, Norwegian said it took a stake in Norsk. The fuel producer has also said that Norwegian and Cargolux Airlines have signed off-take agreements, and that Lux-Airport, Luxembourg airport’s operator, is another shareholder.
Boeing in 2024 also invested in Australia’s Wagner Sustainable Fuels to support that firm’s development of a SAF production facility.
