Summit Next Gen secures site for ethanol-to-jet facility

Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) developer Summit Next Gen announced successful acquisition of a 60-acre site in Houston on the Houston Ship Channel to serve as the foundation for the company’s ambitious project to build the world’s largest ethanol-to-jet SAF production facility.

“The completion of this project and commencement of operations will facilitate the creation of the first at-scale ETJ SAF production facility providing critical new markets for our agricultural and ethanol feedstock partners and helping to bridge the supply shortage of SAF globally, as demand for continued decarbonization efforts for the aviation industry exponentially increase,” said Bruce Rastetter, founder and executive chairman, Summit Agricultural Group.

The new facility, powered by Honeywell UOP’s licensed technology, aims to provide a scalable supply of low-carbon jet fuel.

With access to existing and planned marine, pipeline, rail, and other logistical infrastructure, Summit Next Gen will be able to efficiently source ethanol feedstock and distribute SAF to major markets both domestically and internationally.

The company has secured funding through a successful development capital fundraising round, enabling them to advance the project to a final investment decision (FID) in 2025.

Earlier in June, the company appointed Robert Halpin as chief executive officer whose previous experience includes roles at Crestwood Equity Partners, where he oversaw commercial, operations, engineering, and project management.

“Summit Next Gen continues to deliver on key milestones towards successfully executing this transformational project,” said Justin Kirchhoff, CEO, Summit Agricultural Group.

“Bringing Robert on board to lead our efforts as CEO of the company, closing on our strategic site acquisition on the Houston Ship Channel, and successfully completing our next round of development capital fundraising positions Summit Next Gen to advance our final phase of engineering and project design with Burns & McDonnell and Honeywell UOP, continue building out the management team under Robert’s leadership, and aggressively advance our commercial offtake discussions to position the Company for FID by mid-year 2025 and commence operations in 2027.”

With the site acquisition and strong leadership in place, Summit Next Gen is well-positioned to deliver a significant impact on the global aviation industry by reducing carbon emissions and promoting sustainable air travel.