Twelve and Etihad Airways partner to advance sustainable aviation fuel made from CO2 and renewable energy

The companies will work toward a demon­stra­tion flight and to provide E‑Jet^® fuel, Twelve’s low carbon aviation fuel, to support Etihad’s sustainability strategy

BERKELEY, Calif. – (BUSINESS WIRE) – Carbon trans­for­ma­tion company Twelve and Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates, announce today a Memorandum of Under­standing (MOU) to collaborate on advancing E‑Jet^® fuel, Twelve’s sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) made from CO₂ and renewable energy, and plans to work towards an inter­na­tional demon­stra­tion flight and a supply roadmap that supports Etihad’s sustain­ability strategy. Northstar.vc, a boutique investment firm special­izing in supply chain technology and fintech, facilitated the partnership discussions.

Twelve and Etihad will work to accelerate production and use of Twelve’s E‑Jet fuel, a low carbon jet fuel (or e‑fuel) produced by a power-to-liquids process leveraging the company’s carbon trans­for­ma­tion technology. As part of the agreement, the two companies will collaborate on a supply roadmap that helps meet growing demand for SAF for the Etihad network and on expanding the footprint of SAF in the global market.

“We are honored to partner with Etihad to work toward a supply of drop-in jet fuel made from air, not oil,” said Twelve co-founder and CEO Nicholas Flanders. ​“Our E‑Jet fuel allows airlines like Etihad to reduce emissions by up to 90% with their existing aircraft fleet, which will be critical to achieving the United Nations’ 2050 net-zero emissions target in aviation.”

“Etihad Airways is working hard on its sustain­ability strategy and deploying a range of initiatives across the spectrum of sustain­ability to achieve that,” said Mohammad Al Bulooki, Chief Operating Officer at Etihad Airways. ​“Collab­o­rating with sustainable aviation fuel makers like Twelve, to advance products like E‑Jet fuel, is an important part of that drive.”

Tested and validated by the U.S. Air Force, Twelve’s E‑Jet fuel is produced using their carbon trans­for­ma­tion technology, which uses only renewable energy and water to transform CO₂ into critical chemicals and materials conven­tion­ally made from fossil fuels, and in partnership with Emerging Fuels Technology. With up to 90% lower lifecycle emissions compared to conven­tional fossil-based fuels, E‑Jet fuel is a drop-in synthetic fuel that works seamlessly with existing aircraft and faces no constraints on feedstock, offering the best viable long-term solution to address emissions in the aviation industry. Tran­si­tioning to E‑Jet fuel not only reduces reliance on fossil fuels, but also reduces particulate emissions from aviation and decreases impacts on neighboring communities.

“We drive meaningful change towards decar­bonizing global supply chains and support the aviation industry in its journey towards a more sustainable future,” said Amir Karimpour, Managing Partner at northstar.vc. ​“Echoing our ethos of being a strategic value-add investor, we are thrilled to foster the partnership between Etihad Airways and Twelve,” said Erol Suesler, Partner at northstar.vc.

In July 2022, Twelve announced a collab­o­ra­tion with Alaska Airlines and Microsoft to advance production and use of E‑Jet fuel, and to work towards a US commercial demon­stra­tion flight utilizing their E‑Jet fuel. In March 2022, Shopify, one of the largest corporate purchasers of long-term carbon removal, announced the first purchase of E‑Jet fuel through the company’s Sustainability Fund.

About Etihad Airways

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, was formed in 2003 and quickly went on to become one of the world’s leading airlines. From its home in Abu Dhabi, Etihad flies to passenger and cargo desti­na­tions in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and North America. Together with Etihad’s codeshare partners, Etihad’s network offers access to hundreds of inter­na­tional desti­na­tions. In recent years, Etihad has received numerous awards for its superior service and products, cargo offering, loyalty programme and more.

Etihad sees tackling the climate crisis as the most important issue of our time and was named the Airline Ratings Envi­ron­mental Airline of the Year 2022. Through strategic part­ner­ships with major global aviation brands and OEMs and other innovators, Etihad is relentless in its pursuit of industry decarbonisation.

About Twelve

Twelve is the carbon trans­for­ma­tion company, a new kind of chemical company built for the climate era. We make essential products from air, not oil. Our ground­breaking technology eliminates emissions by trans­forming CO₂ into critical chemicals, materials and fuels that today are made from fossil fuels. We call it carbon trans­for­ma­tion, and it funda­men­tally changes how we can address climate change, reduce emissions and reverse the carbon imbalance. Reinventing what it means to be a chemical company, we’re on a mission to create a climate positive world and a fossil free future through the power of chemistry. Learn more at www.twelve.co.

About Northstar.vc

As a boutique venture capital firm, we invest in firms that are at the forefront of innovation and are committed to advancing sustainable solutions. We partner with disruptive technology companies that are accel­er­ating the energy transition and are dedicated to creating a more sustainable future for generations to come.

Our portfolio companies are revo­lu­tion­izing the way we think about energy, trans­porta­tion, and manu­fac­turing, and are shaping the industries of tomorrow. We work closely with our portfolio companies to provide strategic support and assistance with geographic footprint expansion as they develop and bring to market solutions that address the world’s most pressing challenges.