UK low-carbon fuels developer Carbon Neutral Fuels (CNF) and Australian energy and infrastructure company Energy Estate have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore the development of a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) project in North Queensland.
The agreement, signed in London on 9 September, will see CNF and Energy Estate subsidiary BioNQ Developments assess the potential to produce SAF using sugarcane agricultural waste as feedstock.
The companies will evaluate potential feedstock supply, site selection, technology pathways and offtake opportunities as part of the collaboration.
CNF said the MoU marks its first step into the Australian market as it looks to apply experience from the UK and Europe to Australia’s developing low-carbon liquid fuels sector.
“Collaborating with our colleagues at Energy Estate on the development of a sugar-cane-based SAF project in Queensland is the first step toward meeting Australia’s upcoming mandate targets,” CNF co-founder and director Sophie Zienkiewicz said.
“This project will become a vital asset in Australia’s domestic energy security and at CNF we are delighted to be able to share our learnings from the UK and European landscape to help inform Australia’s low carbon liquid fuel strategy.”
Energy Estate co-founder Simon Currie said the partnership would support the development of the BioNQ project and the broader bioeconomy in Queensland.
“North Queensland is the right location to harness abundant existing feedstock and unlock new resources by investment in infrastructure,” Currie said.
“Our partnership with CNF will help us to accelerate development of BioNQ by leveraging experience from other markets globally.”
The MoU builds on a strategic affiliation between Energy Estate and Queensland Cane Agriculture and Renewables (QCAR) announced earlier this year to advance the BioNQ Project.
The companies said the latest agreement will allow them to assess the project opportunity in greater detail, with the stated aim of supporting Australia’s fuel security and future SAF mandate targets.
