jet fuel
 
EDMONTON, ALBERTA, CANADA — Edmonton International Airport (EIA) and NextStep Renewable Energy have signed an agreement to develop low-carbon, renewable fuels for the aviation and airport sectors.

The two will use existing, proven and market ready technology, and plan to construct a processing facility in Alberta to produce low carbon jet fuel.

“Our proposed Alberta-based processing facility will provide security of supply and create Alberta jobs while using second generation, proven technology to produce high quality drop-in jet fuel and diesel fuel to help Alberta with its low carbon initiatives,” said Bryce Bonneville, president of NextStep.

Earlier this month, EIA took a step forward in the use of renewable resources by participating in Air Canada’s biofuel demonstration flight, which coincided with a Trade and Investment Mission to San Francisco, led by Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson and Alberta Economic Development and Trade Minister, Deron Bilous.

This biofuel flight reflects a collaborative approach to bringing forward low-carbon, renewable fuels into the aviation and airport sectors.

“We look forward to working with NSRE as we take the Edmonton Metro Region and Alberta forward in developing biofuels, lowering carbon emissions and generating jobs,” said Tom Ruth, president and chief executive officer of EIA. “This work will support our goal of carbon-neutral growth by 2021 and help establish EIA as a global aviation leader and most importantly, drive research into new biofuel technologies and processes.”

As part of the agreement, NextStep becomes the newest member of the Alberta Aerospace and Technology Centre (AATC) at EIA, which focuses on attracting and building a cluster of activity in aerospace and technology at EIA for the benefit of Alberta.

NextStep Renewable Energy Inc. is a developer of hydrogenation derived renewable jet and diesel facilities using second-generation renewable fuel technology.

It utilizes a combination of heat and hydrogen to convert non-food grade fats, oils and greases into fuel that is chemically equivalent to petroleum-based diesel and jet fuel with better cold weather and storage properties than conventional bio-fuels.

The fuels produced through this technology have a lower carbon intensity relative to traditional petroleum equivalents and will help Alberta/Canada achieve its low carbon initiatives.