A Milestone Fifteen Years in the Making
LanzaJet has achieved a historic first by operating its Freedom Pines Fuels facility in Soperton, Georgia, to full production of specification compliant jet fuel derived from ethanol. The success crowns fifteen years of research, scale up, and partnership among farmers, technologists, airlines, and investors, demonstrating that innovation perseverance can unlock entirely new fuel markets.
How the Alcohol to Jet Process Works
The facility employs LanzaJet proprietary Alcohol to Jet technology, combining Technip Energies Hummingbird reactor and an oligomerisation unit developed with the United States Department of Energy. In simple terms, ethanol is dehydrated to ethylene, then joined into longer hydrocarbon chains that are finally refined into jet range fuel. Because the input ethanol can come from agricultural residues, municipal waste, or captured carbon, the concept is adaptable to many countries with established ethanol industries.
Economic and Environmental Upside
During construction, more than three hundred workers contributed to the site, and ongoing operations create over sixty quality jobs. Once blended, the resulting sustainable aviation fuel can reduce life cycle emissions by up to eighty percent compared with conventional jet fuel, supporting airline decarbonisation commitments without requiring aircraft modifications. Moreover, the project illustrates how rural economies can capture new revenue by supplying low cost feedstock.
Hidden Advantage: Infrastructure Compatibility
Because the fuel meets ASTM jet specifications, it can be transported through current pipelines and stored in existing airport tanks. This compatibility eliminates the need for large upfront investment in dedicated infrastructure, shortening the timeline for widespread adoption and offering investors a quicker route to returns.
Conclusion
Freedom Pines stands as a practical blueprint for scaling sustainable aviation fuel worldwide. By proving ethanol to jet conversion at commercial volume, LanzaJet has opened the door for rapid replication, enhanced energy sovereignty, and meaningful progress toward climate aligned flight.