NorSAF and Nova Pangaea Technologies to develop waste biomass-to-SAF supply chain

The partnership aims to address Europe’s growing challenge of meeting increasing demand for SAF while developing more resilient and locally sourced feedstock supply chains.

Over the coming decade, SAF production must scale up dramatically. Under EU regulations, aviation fuel suppliers are required to sharply increase the share of SAF at EU airports, rising from 2% in 2025 to 6% in 2030, and jumping to 20% by 2035.

While Europe manufactures a significant portion of its current SAF domestically, production relies heavily on Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA) technology. Meeting regulated targets with this method requires importing vast quantities of feedstocks like used cooking oil. Approximately 85% of Europe's SAF feedstocks already come from overseas, with China alone accounting for 61%.

Although production capacity is technically on track to meet near-term goals in 2030, doing so with overwhelming reliance on imported feedstocks like Chinese used cooking oil threatens supply chain security. As demand accelerates, Europe must secure sustainable feedstocks that are locally available and independent of fragile overseas trade networks. Agricultural and forestry residues present strong regional alternatives, particularly in countries like Latvia, where these bio-resources are abundant. Tapping into this potential requires advanced SAF plants, such as NorSAF, which harness innovative technologies to produce high-performance aviation fuels from alternative local feedstocks.

Nova Pangaea’s REFNOVA^® technology converts waste biomass, such as woody and agricultural residues that are plentiful in Latvia, into ethanol and biochar, a valuable co-product which permanently captures carbon and makes the whole process carbon negative. The resulting locally sourced ethanol can then be converted into SAF through the alcohol-to-jet pathway as part of NorSAF’s planned SAF production.

Janis Kisiels, founder and Board Member of NorSAF, said: “Europe cannot strengthen its energy security simply by reducing fossil-fuel imports. We also need to build the industrial capacity to produce the clean fuels that will replace them. Right now, Europe is dangerously dependent on overseas feedstocks like used cooking oil, leaving our aviation sector vulnerable to international supply chain shocks. By tapping into Europe’s own abundant waste resources, particularly those available in the Baltic region, we can build a resilient, domestic supply chain from the ground up. Our partnership with Nova Pangaea is a crucial milestone in developing that strategic capability right here in Latvia, ensuring our future SAF production is sustainable, secure, and locally anchored.”

Jonathan Wood, CCO of Nova Pangaea, said: “This strategic collaboration will ensure we have carbon-negative ethanol to feed NorSAF’s SAF project, using locally sourced biomass waste. This is a blueprint for the type of partnerships we need to scale SAF production in Europe and all regions of the world, enhancing energy security, building a new domestic industry that generates jobs and economic growth while reducing fossil-fuel emissions. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), there is sufficient waste biomass available in Europe to produce enough SAF to meet Europe’s ambitious SAF targets for 2050.”

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/clean-fuels/02102026/norsaf-and-nova-pangaea-technologies-to-develop-waste-biomass-to-saf-supply-chain/