German energy firm Uniper will buy 40,000 tonnes of green hydrogen-based sustainable aviation fuel (e-SAF) from a Danish project for over a decade under a binding deal.
The volumes will come from Arcadia eFuels’ Project Endor in Vordingborg, Denmark, which aims to produce 80,000 tonnes of e-SAF from a 240MW electrolyser and biogenic carbon dioxide (CO2).
Having completed front-end engineering design studies earlier this year, Arcadia expects to begin production at the site in the “early 2030s” – far later than original plans to start operations in 2025.
Earlier this year, the project secured a €54m ($61.6m) EU Innovation Fund grant.
Uniper said the deal positions it in a market expected to “grow rapidly over the coming decades.”
“This agreement brings long-term demand and new supply together, helping to create the conditions for a competitive European e-SAF market,” said CEO Michael Lewis.
From 2030, the EU will introduce a sub-mandate for e-SAF of 1.2%, which could scale up to 35% by 2050.
Uniper has been investing in e-fuels for years, previously taking stakes in the now-bankrupt developer Liquid Wind. It also recently awarded around $10m in basic engineering contracts for its planned 115,000-tonne e-methanol project in Sweden.
Arcadia CEO Amy Herbet said the binding offtake from Uniper would help de-risk the firm’s capital strategy.
Earlier this month, Arcadia signed a partnership with MB Energy to explore e-SAF transportation, storage, blending, and delivery.
