Wedoany.com Report-Oct. 21, Topsoe A/S (Lyngby, Denmark) and Sasol Ltd. (Johannesburg, South Africa), together with Griesemann Gruppe, Germany, and the German Aerospace Center (DLR), have signed a cooperation agreement to support the construction, operation, and R&D of DLR’s e-fuels demonstration facility for sustainable aviation fuel (e-SAF) production.

The plant is part of DLR’s e-fuels Technology Platform Power-to-Liquid Fuels (TPP) at the Leuna Chemical Complex, Germany. Under construction since October 1, 2024, it is expected to produce 2,500 tons of e-fuels annually starting Q4 2027. The facility will produce mainly kerosene using renewable feedstocks, including biogenic CO2 and green hydrogen. With €130 million in funding from the German Federal Ministry for Transport, it will be the largest global demonstration and research facility for e-fuels production.

Elena Scaltritti, CCO at Topsoe, said: “Demonstration facilities, like the TPP, are essential for proving the capabilities of new technologies and highlighting the viability of innovative products like e-fuels. We are excited to join forces with DLR, Sasol and Griesemann to develop this demonstration plant as well as the technologies that will support the rollout of power-to-liquid fuels at scale.”

Sarushen Pillay, Executive Vice President at Sasol, added: “DLR, Topsoe and Sasol’s collaboration stretches over many years, and we are proud that the TPP received funding, our efficient and high yielding G2L™ e-fuels technology was selected, and we can be part of demonstrating and developing e-fuels production. Together with our partners Topsoe and Griesemann we have a winning team with the expertise to make this project a success, which we believe will be an important step in enabling SAF production at scale, as well as supporting downstream application and flight testing to move us to a fully decarbonized industry.”

Björn Griesemann, CEO at Griesemann Group, stated: “The Technology Platform Power-to-Liquid Fuels is the basis for future industrial production and the extensive use of sustainable fuels, particularly in aviation. Our engineering enables the technologies developed by Topsoe and Sasol, as well as the research conducted by DLR, to be transferred into feasible, scalable concepts – thus closing the gap between research and practice.”

Manfred Aigner, Coordinator Sustainable Fuels at DLR, said: “The Technology Platform Power-to-Liquid Fuels (TPP) is the next important step in advancing the market ramp-up of PtL-fuels. As a lighthouse project, the TPP offers a unique research platform. Our aim is to work in an application-orientated manner and to close the gap between the laboratory and the refinery in the development of PtL-fuels. For this task we value the co-operation with experienced technology providers.”

The TPP will integrate Topsoe’s eREACT™ technology for low-carbon hydrogen and fuels with Sasol’s LTFT™ (low-temperature Fischer-Tropsch) technology under the G2L™ e-fuels process. This end-to-end Single Point Licensing solution converts renewable feedstocks like captured CO2 and hydrogen into e-fuels, optimizing hydrogen use, minimizing carbon footprint, maximizing yields, and providing a reliable, scalable solution. Griesemann Gruppe serves as the engineering, procurement, and construction contractor, ensuring the integration of technologies and processes for a complete, operational demonstration plant.

This collaboration marks a key step in advancing e-fuels production, supporting sustainable aviation, and demonstrating the full value chain of electricity-based fuels at scale.