Thailand’s TTCL to develop SAF project in Turkey

Thailand’s integrated EPC company, TTCL, has been awarded a FEED and cost estimation contract for a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant in Turkey.

The project, developed by DB Tarımsal Enerji, aims to leverage its experience in biodiesel production.

The FEED and cost estimation contract is valued at $3.3m (THB 110m) and is expected to be completed in seven months. TTCL plans to transition to EPCm after the FEED work is finished.

DB Tarımsal Enerji already has a production capacity of 100,000 tons of biodiesel and recently announced that its subsidiary became a member of the ISCC, a certification body for sustainable carbon products.

“We are setting out on a new path with the experience we have gained in biodiesel production,” said DB Tarımsal Enerji Board Chairman Selçuk Borovalı in 2022 when he set out the company’s plans to enter into SAF production.

“We aim to complete our investments in 2022 in a way that will enable the production of intermediate products related to sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). We plan to put the new facility, which will allow the processing of many different types of waste including industrial waste, into operation by the end of 2022. Our facility investment will enable the aviation sector in our country to realize its adaptation process to international policies through the use of domestic resources.”

Domestic firms across Turkey are looking to establish a strong foothold in the SAF market. Oil refining company Tupraş is also working to develop SAF production capabilities at its Izmir refinery.

The company is targeting to produce 300,000 metric tons of SAF per annum through co-processing using lipid feedstocks. Tupraş has announced that it will begin trading waste raw materials on January 1, 2025.

Tiryaki Agro and its subsidiaries will then supply at least 450,000 tons of Tupraş’s estimated annual vegetable and animal waste raw material needs (300,000 tons) for a period of 10 years starting from January 1, 2029, to be used towards the production of biofuels including SAF.