All Nippon Airways (ANA), Japan’s largest airline for seven consecutive years, has signed an offtake agreement with LanzaTech, Inc. for the purchase of alcohol-to-jet sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) beginning in 2021.

ANA has always been guided by our values, and our decision to transition to sustainable aviation fuel reflects how seriously we take our commitment to the environment. Adopting this advanced fuel will allow us to reduce CO₂ emissions and meet the ambitious sustainable development goals that we have set for the airline. At ANA, we seek innovative solutions to the most pressing problems, and we will continue looking for ways to reduce our ecological impact in order to create a better world.

—Akihiko Miura, Executive Vice President of ANA

LanzaTech is using advanced microorganism-powered gas fermentation technology to create ethanol and commercializing technology developed in collaboration with Pacific Northwest National Labs (PNNL) that allows for the production of sustainable aviation fuel. (Earlier post.)

PNNL developed a unique thermocatalytic process for converting ethanol into ATJ-SPK. The first step of the process is to convert the ethanol into ethylene (“dehydration”). During the second step (“oligomerization”), ethylene molecules are chemically combined to build the range of hydrocarbon molecules needed for aviation fuel.

These hydrocarbons are then hydrogenated, followed by fractionation to produce alcohol-to-jet synthetic paraffinic kerosene with the desired properties. The process can use ethanol from any source, including ethanol produced via LanzaTech’s proprietary gas-to-ethanol process.

ANA signed a partnership agreement with Mitsui & Co., Ltd., which strategically invested in LanzaTech, in 2018, to develop jointly a sustainable aviation fuel manufacturing business that utilizes LanzaTech’s innovative catalytic technology.

Working with Mitsui & Co., Ltd, ANA plans to implement these breakthroughs by testing LanzaTech’s sustainable aviation fuel made from industrial waste emissions on a new delivery flight this fall.

As ANA increases its global presence, the airline is working to ensure that it maintains its reputation for global leadership on issues of sustainability. This led the airline to conduct a comprehensive search for the most efficient sustainable aviation fuel, selecting LanzaTech's unique product for its flexibility and high energy density.

The sustainable aviation fuel developed by LanzaTech does not contain any sulfur and as per current international standards for all sustainable aviation fuel used in commercial flights will be blended with at least 50% conventional jet fuel, easing the transition to full sustainability.