The UK aviation sector, responsible for around 7% of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, is under mounting pressure to decarbonize.
Against this backdrop, MAIRE’s subsidiary NEXTCHEM has signed on to deliver key technologies for a new Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) facility in Immingham, Lincolnshire, scheduled to begin operations by 2030.
The project, led by Altalto (Immingham) Ltd., a company originally established by Velocys, will convert residual municipal solid waste (MSW) and commercial and industrial (C&I) waste into jet fuel. Once operational, the plant is expected to produce 30 million liters, or roughly 23,000 tones, of SAF annually. This output would equate to fueling more than 500 transatlantic flights between London and New York each year, directly contributing to the UK government’s SAF Mandate. That policy requires 2% of aviation fuel demand to be met by SAF in 2025, scaling to 10% by 2030 and 22% by 2040.
The facility will incorporate NEXTCHEM’s NX Circular
gasification technology, which converts waste into synthesis gas (syngas), alongside NX CPO (Controlled Partial Oxidation), which enhances efficiency through rapid oxidation. The syngas will be processed using Velocys’ Fischer-Tropsch technology to produce SynCrude before refining into SAF. The integration of these processes is intended to maximize fuel yield and reduce the lifecycle carbon intensity compared with conventional jet fuel.
The project’s backers emphasize its dual benefits for climate and regional development. By NEXTCHEM’s estimates, the facility will prevent more than 100,000 tones of CO₂-equivalent emissions annually while creating around 100 permanent jobs. Construction is projected to employ 1,000 workers directly, with a further 300 indirect jobs generated across the supply chain.
In addition to its climate impact, the project has implications for energy security. By producing jet fuel domestically, the UK reduces its reliance on imported kerosene, while also positioning itself as a potential exporter of advanced fuels and related technologies.
The UK Department for Transport’s Advanced Fuels Fund is supporting the project’s Basic Engineering Design phase. With SAF currently priced at two to five times the cost of conventional jet fuel, government incentives and long-term policy clarity are seen as critical to scaling production. The Immingham facility, while modest compared with total UK aviation fuel demand—estimated at over 12 million tones annually—marks a step toward building domestic production capacity.
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