Axens launches France’s first industrial-scale SAF unit with Jetanol™
- Capacity set at 50,000 tonnes per year of SAF production.
- Project is in site selection in France and targeted to begin operations in 2030.
- Project company SAFIRIS will deploy JETANOL™ technology developed by Axens and IFPEN.
- Uses advanced ethanol from European feedstocks to complement HEFA and e‑SAF routes and support ReFuelEU targets.
Project overview
Axens has launched the ERA project (Ethanol to Refuel Aviation), France’s first industrial-scale SAF production unit based on advanced bioethanol, with a planned capacity of 50,000 tonnes per year. The facility is currently in the site-selection stage in France and is targeted to begin operations in 2030. The project will be carried out by a dedicated company named SAFIRIS.
Technology
The unit will deploy JETANOL™ technology, developed jointly by Axens and IFP Energies nouvelles (IFPEN). The AtJ (Alcohol-to-Jet) process comprises three integrated steps—dehydration, oligomerization and hydrogenation—and has been selected for multiple international projects for its yields and technological maturity. Axens’ SAF technology portfolio also covers HEFA, advanced biofuels, e‑SAF and methanol-based pathways.
Strategic and regulatory context
ERA aims to broaden SAF feedstock options beyond used cooking oils and animal fats (HEFA route) by using advanced ethanol from European feedstocks. The project is framed as both an energy-transition and sovereignty initiative, supporting French and European ambitions under the ReFuelEU Aviation regulation, which requires a substantial increase in SAF supply for flights departing from Europe.
Industrial impact
Axens positions ERA as a replicable model to build a French SAF value chain: reducing dependence on imports of fossil jet fuel and SAF, creating direct and indirect jobs linked to the advanced ethanol value chain, and demonstrating key success factors for low‑carbon molecule production at industrial scale.
Source: Axens
