Jet Zero Australia has received $14 million (€12.5 million) in funding from the Commonwealth and Queensland governments to advance Project Ulysses, the company's flagship sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) initiative in Townsville.
The support includes $9 million (€8 million) from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and $5 million (€4.5 million) from the Queensland Government under the New-Industry Development Strategy.
Project Ulysses aims to convert agricultural by-products into 102 million litres of SAF and 11 million litres of renewable diesel per year.
This funding, the largest government investment in an SAF project in Australia's history, will facilitate the completion of Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) activities and accelerate the commercial deployment of Alcohol-to-Jet (ATJ) technology.
Jet Zero Australia CEO Ed Mason said, “Delivering Project Ulysses will help capture the economic benefits of a domestic SAF industry for Australia, which is expected to be worth $10 billion annually and create up to 26,200 jobs nationwide by 2030, with regional Australia positioned more than anywhere to benefit.”
This government backing builds on over $30 million (€27 million) in private investment from project partners, including Qantas, Airbus, and Idemitsu Kosan. Mason noted, “The grant announcements today build on an earlier $760,000 grant received by Jet Zero from the Department of State Development and Infrastructure that supported the project's initial feasibility study.” The company is targeting the start of production by 2027.
