Posted: 15th January, 2025
Zurich-based SAF producer announced two facilities in 2024 – a demonstration site in Switzerland and a production facility in Denmark.
- This round follows an $8 million raise in early 2023, as well as a $5 million grant from the Swiss Federal Office of Energy – taking total funding to $22 million.
- The round was led by Celsius Industries. RockCreek, Fortescue Ventures and Verve Ventures also participated.
- Existing investors Energy Impact Partners and Contrarian Ventures also extended their investment in Metafuels.
- Metafuels’ drop-in sustainable aviation fuel aims to lead on both environmental performance and lowest cost of production – through an ultra-efficient conversion of feedstock to eSAF.
- Aviation is responsible for ~3% of global CO2 emissions – Metafuels’ technology has the ability to cut total life cycle emissions by up to 90% compared to conventional jet fuel.
- The funds will be used to demonstrate Metafuels’ full chain production process, “aerobrew” and advance the development of its first industrial-scale projects.
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – Metafuels, the developer of groundbreaking technology for sustainable aviation fuel compatible with existing aircrafts, announces its latest, oversubscribed $9 million round – led by Celsius Industries (fka UNTITLED and anchored by the Tetra Laval industrial family).
Other new investors are RockCreek, Fortescue Ventures, Verve Ventures, with existing investors Energy Impact Partners (EIP) and Contrarian Ventures also participating.
Metafuels has now raised $22 million in just over two years, making it one of Europe’s best funded sustainable aviation fuel startups.
Scaling up industrial production of sustainable aviation fuel:
The round follows several technological breakthroughs in 2023 and 2024, which herald the next phase of Metafuels development cycle – moving from lab research to demonstration and production scale-up. Additionally, Metafuels – alongside the PSI Institute – has recently secured a $5 million grant from the Swiss Government’s Federal Office of Energy.
In May this year, Metafuels announced that it has signed an agreement with European Energy to set up a synthetic sustainable aviation fuel (eSAF) facility in Denmark. The facility will produce approximately 12,000 litres of eSAF daily. The project development phase is underway, with Metafuels already engaged in early offtake conversations, including through a potential buyers’ alliance with airlines, fuel suppliers, airports, and corporate travellers alike.
Discussing Metafuels’ industrialisation and commercialisation plans, Chairman Leigh Hackett adds:“The buyers alliance is something that we’re actively considering in support of our plans for eSAF capacity build-out as we scale-up and industrialise our technology. By coming alongside us, participants will have privileged insights into technology developments, play an important role in bringing this much needed technology to market, all while securing increasing volumes of eSAF to meet their decarbonisation obligations.”
The near-and long-term solution for aviation:
Like other SAF players, Metafuels focuses on the production of sustainable aviation fuel made using renewable electricity as the primary energy source (eSAF). However, Metafuels’ differentiation is cost leadership through the ability to convert its feedstock (e-methanol) into eSAF with a significantly higher yield, ensuring a more efficient and cost-effective process. Metafuels’ signature eSAF, aerobrew, can replace conventional kerosene regardless of the size, type of aircraft, and short-haul or long-haul.
Saurabh Kapoor, CEO and co-founder of Metafuels, commented: “We are thrilled to have Celsius, RockCreek, Fortescue and Verve onboard as new strategic partners. We have now raised $22 million since launching, which is going to allow us to complete the demonstration programme and focus on industrialisation, and the commercial rollout for our eSAF offering. We will be looking at implementing a number of new sustainable aviation fuel production sites and are already engaging with various stakeholders as potential investors or eSAF off-takers.”
Michele Tarawneh, Managing Partner at Celsius Industries, commented: “We have been tracking methanol-to-SAF as a key pathway to decarbonize aviation for the past 18 months, and Metafuels stands out as the most compelling player in the space: an experienced team, with a unique technology insight, and a tangible path to establish production capacity in the near-term. We are thrilled to work with Saurabh, Leigh and the team, to help them accelerate their path to industrialization and first-of-a-kind (FOAK) project finance, enabling the roll-out of mission critical infrastructure for green fuels.”
Media contact
Harry Ashcroft | Boiling Blue harry@boilingblue.org | (44) 7429108277
About Metafuels
Metafuels is a Zurich-based aviation tech startup, focused on the development and deployment of proprietary sustainable fuel technologies, with an initial focus on synthetic aviation fuel. Metafuels is positioned to address one of the most challenging areas of decarbonization, with the aviation industry responsible for up to 3.5% of total global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). Metafuels intends to develop and bring to market sustainable aviation fuels which do not require a reengineering or re-purchasing of existing aircraft, or aviation logistics infrastructure.
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