Nacero
Sustainable aviation fuel from renewable natural gas.
Headquarters: Houston, TX | Industry: Energy | Invested: 2021
About
Nacero is developing facilities that will use global technology leader Topsoe’s catalytic process, integrated carbon capture and 100% clean power to convert renewable natural gas and associated natural gas into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), lower carbon aviation fuel (LCAF) and lower carbon footprint light fuels. Biomethane emissions are vast and represent a virtually unlimited source of feedstock for SAF.
Market drivers
The aviation industry is responsible for 12% of CO2 emissions from all transports sources and is on a mission to rapidly decarbonize. Passenger, freight and US federal SAF targets amount to 3 billion gallons per year by 2030 and 35 billion gallons per year by 2050. The US government (11% of the US market) is mandated to be 100% net-zero by 2050.
Impact
Using captured biogas feedstock, integrated carbon capture, and 100% renewable power will result in millions of tons of CO2 savings annually while creating thousands of clean energy jobs. RNG can be secured from a variety of sources including, but not limited to, landfills, farms, forests and waste treatment plants. Methane is up to 80 times more harmful in the atmosphere than CO2 over 20 years. For this reason, SAF made from RNG can have a negative carbon footprint. Additionally, use of RNG avoids the social and environmental issues associated with some alternatives, such as ‘food versus fuel’.
