Cambridge start-up bags funding to accelerate SAF production

Cambridge startup Neela Biotech has been awarded grant funding by Henry Royce Institute to develop sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) through its own nature-inspired anaerobic digestion process.

Their process, called the Controlled Microbial Upcycling, transforms multiple waste streams into low-cost, drop-in jet fuel by leveraging existing biogas plant and refinery infrastructure.

Unlike traditional SAF which rely on feedstocks which can displace food production, CMU eliminates competition for food, land and water whilst reducing production costs.

Neela Biotech will collaborate with the Aviation Impact Accelerator (AIA) at the Whittle Laboratory, University of Cambridge, on a five-month long feasibility study of carbon-negative fatty acid production via their novel CMU process.

The funding will be used to bring the technology to market for SAF production.

“Our CMU process tackles these barriers by using diverse feedstocks, replacing energy-intensive processes with low-cost microbial action and leveraging existing infrastructure. This makes our pathway highly scalable and cost-effective,” said Dr Deepanshu Singh, researcher in sustainable aviation and Business Development Lead at the AIA.

“Our approach has only recently become feasible due to advances in microbiome engineering and AI-driven bio-process design. Further, the demand for SAFs is rising at an unprecedented rate because of airlines’ net zero targets and global SAF mandates,” added Friederike Nintzel, final-year Marie Curie PhD fellow in synthetic biology at the University of Cambridge.

Neela Biotech is also a part of IAG Innovation Accelerator, parent company of airlines including British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia and Vueling.