The Navigator Company and Hamburg-based developer P2X-Europe have decided, subject to the approval of the relevant anti-trust authorities, to create a unique and powerful joint venture, P2X-Portugal, to develop a world-class production facility for industrial-scale production of non-fossil jet fuels or e-sustainable aviation fuels (e-SAFs) – carbon-neutral synthetic kerosene, based on green H₂ and biogenic CO₂.

This project leverages on Portugal's highly competitive renewable energy sources and on biogenic CO₂ generated by Navigator's biorefineries using sustainable forests, which together constitute the two critical elements for the successful production of net-zero synthetic feedstocks for the chemical industry and jet fuels on an industrial scale, fostering the decarbonization of the aviation industry.

The JV is tapping into the extensive know-how of P2X-Europe, a global pioneer in Power-to-Liquids (PtL) project development and technology configuration and its parent companies’ H&R Group and Mabanaft market expertise in waxes for the chemical-pharmaceutical industry and in liquid fuels. Furthermore, the quality of the JV builds on Navigator’s vast industrial operational experience in biorefinery plants and forestry capabilities.

P2X-Portugal is a determined agile frontrunner well on course to become an international reference for the market introduction and commercialization of innovative synthetic aviation fuel products at scale.

Portugal is in a unique position to become a hub to produce green H₂ derivatives such as synthetic jet fuels, creating jobs and securing a leading role in establishing an entirely new industry based on renewable energy and sustainable forests as the underlying source of biogenic carbon, which will be key in driving decarbonization towards net-zero.

The establishment in Navigator’s Figueira da Foz site marks a key milestone for Portugal and Europe on the road towards building up a fully integrated eSAF ecosystem, as well as demonstrating a sustainable approach to the decarbonization of the aviation sector.

Project profile in a nutshell

The joint venture by the name of P2X-Portugal will bring together leading technology and engineering companies and integrates the whole process value chain from feedstock sourcing to market introduction and product distribution.

Comprising carbon capture of up to 280,000 tons of biogenic CO₂ and several hundred megawatts of new renewable energy capacity, the project aims at reaching a total net-zero synthetic PtL production capacity of 80,000 tpy when fully developed, allowing to reduce annual carbon emissions of up to 280,000 tons.

The facility will be integrating several innovative technology components and will use a proven conversion process, leveraging recent process improvements and technologies to maximize its sustainability and system efficiency.

For the integrated PtL facility alone the project CAPEX can total €550-600 MM during the first two development phases, comprising a green H₂ production plant, biogenic CO₂ capturing equipment, and a production capacity of 40,000 tons per year of synthetic products.

The Portuguese Government has granted P2X-Portugal’s ambitious PtL project the status of Project of National Interest (PIN), which is a relevant testimony to the strength and maturity of P2X Portugal’s overall project quality.

Subject to the fulfilment of identified conditions precedents and to positive FID by mid-2023, the Project is scheduled to start commercial operations as early as the first half of 2026.

Conditions precedents required for a positive FID include, inter alia, (i) availability of competitive renewable energy as required by the project, (ii) appropriate setting of the EU Delegated Act defining green H₂ (currently being discussed in Brussels), (iii) satisfactory long-term offtake commitments, and (iv) obtaining adequate EU and Portuguese government sponsored investment incentives. The JV is in the process of obtaining clearance from EU anti-trust authorities.

Portugal location advantage and Navigator’s forest-based biogenic CO₂

Portugal offers enabling conditions and supporting policy measures that should allow production capacity to grow quickly and consistently with EU climate regulation, which establishes various mandate targets for the use of e-fuels in gradual substitution of fossil fuels.

Major location advantages include access to 100% green (solar and wind) electricity as the primary feedstock for green H₂ production from the electrolysis of water together with one of the richest biogenic CO₂ point sources available in Europe: Navigator’s biorefinery located at Figueira da Foz, 140 km north of Lisbon, which generates process biogenic CO₂ derived from sustainable and certified forests.

No compromise on sustainability

Cognizant of its credibility and market leading role, P2X-Portugal does not compromise on sustainability. The facility opts exclusively for streams of sustainable biogenic carbon from sustainable forests.

Biogenic CO₂ is originally sequestered from the atmosphere by photosynthesis and stored in trees. Using sustainable forest material in biorefinery industrial processes leads to biogenic CO₂ emissions, ensuring a net zero emissions carbon cycle.

P2X-Portugal’s synthetic end-products are a result of a fully sustainable transformation process, initiated with renewable electricity from solar and wind and solar-driven photosynthesis. Through this process, P2X-Portugal will be storing solar and wind energy in a synthetic liquid fuel.

Qualification and outlook

With technology readiness, bankability, time to market and execution speed in mind, P2X-Portugal is not only a determined frontrunner but well on course to become an international reference for the market introduction and commercialization of innovative synthetic fuel products at scale.

The project contributes to the early development of a new strategic value chain in Portugal, as well as to key EU initiatives such as the Green Deal, the EU Hydrogen Strategy and the REPowerEU.

The European Parliament has recently backed a landmark ruling on aviation fuel that sets binding targets for the replacement of conventional kerosene with SAF in general and green H₂-based synthetic fuels produced from renewable energy sources, particularly e-SAF.