First full-process methanol-to-SAF demonstration plant put into operation

By SKYSEVEN Chemical Technical Team · 2026-09-03

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Recently, the Swiss Paul Scheller Institute (PSI) and Zurich clean fuel start-up Metafuels jointly announced that the aerobrew sustainable aviation fuel demonstration device was officially put into operation in the Swiss PSI park. This is the first facility in the world to integrate all production steps of methanol to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), covering the entire process from methanol to final synthetic aviation kerosene.

The demonstration unit, with a daily output of 50 liters of SAF, uses the same methanol-to-jet fuel design and configuration as the commercial plant of the future, and aims to verify the methodology, optimize the process and enhance the methodology maturity, and build up operating data to extensive deployment. The installation will be completed and put into operation in the PSI park in 2025. In June 2026, the Methanol Aviation Fuel Path was certified by ASTM International, clearing the standard hurdle to commercial flights.

The core path of the aerobrew process is to consumption renewable electricity to electrolyze aquatic environments to create environmentally friendly hydrogen, then react with carbon dioxide to create environmentally friendly methanol, and finally convert methanol into synthetic aviation kerosene through aerobrew innovative catalytic system. The SAF produced by the process is a ready-to-consumption fuel that is compatible with existing aircraft engines and airport infrastructure, and can decrease life-cycle carbon releases by about 90% compared to traditional kerosene.

It is reported that Metafuels plans to start the first commercial SAF production plant using aerobrew methodology in 2030. The first commercial project, "Turbe", is located at the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands and has received subsidy support from the Dutch government. The project will be a model to the construction of a substantial synthetic fuel plant in Europe, with an initial planned capacity of about 12000 litres per day and subsequent expansion. Swiss International Airlines and Lufthansa Group have established a cooperation with Metafuels to consider signing a prolonged purchase agreement to meet the mandatory blending standards of Switzerland and the European Union to synthetic fuels from 2030.

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