Dive Brief:
- A commercial-scale facility producing sustainable aviation fuel from carbon dioxide, water and renewable energy began operations in Washington state last week, following early backing by Microsoft and Alaska Air Group, the parent company behind Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines.
- Twelve, a company creating power-to-liquid e-fuel with captured carbon dioxide, announced the plant’s opening in Moses Lake, Washington, on June 10. The facility will also produce a chemical derived from captured CO2, water and renewable energy — called “E-Naphtha” — which will serve as a substitute “building block” for things like plastics, packaging, solvents and synthetic fibers, according to the press release.
- Microsoft and Alaska Air signed a memorandum of understanding with Twelve in 2022 to advance the technology, including demonstration flights. Both companies also committed to purchase the output from the facility, according to last week’s release.
Dive Insight:
Twelve — headquartered in Berkeley, California, and also backed by Carbon Direct, Breakout Ventures and the Chan Zuckerberg initiative, among others — said that its “E-Jet fuel” is “fundamentally different” from conventional bio-based SAF pathways that typically require agricultural feedstocks.
Twelve said its feedstocks — carbon dioxide and renewable electricity — are abundant in the United States and scalable. The SAF that Twelve produces is compatible with today’s airplanes and has up to 90% less lifecycle carbon emissions, according to the release.
Twelve said that by using a power-to-liquid process of manufacturing SAF, the company is also able to offer airlines and corporate buyers long-term, fixed-price fuel contracts. Twelve Co-Founder and CEO Nicholas Flanders said in the release that the plant “is what American industrial electrification looks like.”
“We broke ground on AirPlant One with a simple thesis: that the fuels powering the global economy could be made from renewable electricity and air, anywhere in the world,” Flanders said. “Today, that thesis is operational and Alaska Airlines will fly on fuel made right here in Washington State.”
Twelve credited Alaska Airlines and Microsoft’s purchase of the plant’s output as “the commercial signal that made financing and construction possible,” in last week’s press release. Alaska Airlines and Microsoft also each invested in the company and the plant’s construction, with Alaska Airlines participating in a funding round through its venture arm and Microsoft contributing a strategic investment through its climate fund, the release said.
Alaska Air Group — which consists of Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Horizon Air — has a goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2040. Ryan Spies, managing director of sustainability for Alaska Airlines, said in the release that the airline is “committed to supporting in-state production of sustainable aviation fuel, which is currently the best technology for the airline industry to reach net-zero carbon emissions.”
Alaska Airlines, in a partnership with Microsoft, will run domestic flights using the SAF produced at the facility, while Twelve plans to sell on-specification fuel for commercial aviation use. Microsoft also has an offtake agreement with Twelve that will help reduce its business travel emissions, utilizing a book-and-claim model.
Microsoft has a goal of becoming carbon negative by 2030, and its Chief Sustainability Officer Melanie Nakagawa said in the release that “climate progress depends on collaborations that send signals to investors and innovators to move markets.”
“Our investment in Twelve helps scale energy solutions while laying the groundwork for cleaner aviation at a global scale,” Nakagawa said.
SAF use made up just 0.6% of global jet fuel use in 2025, and is expected to provide only 0.8% of jet fuel consumption this year, according to the International Air Transport Association. While SAF production doubled last year, its growth is expected to slow this year, according to IATA.
