Sulzer Chemtech Ltd. (Winterthur, Switzerland) will support Vandelay Ventures Sdn Bhd in the construction of a world-scale production facility for sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and renewable diesel. Thanks to this partnership, Sabah Maju Jaya Renewable Energy Industrial Complex (SMJREIC) in Sapangar Bay, Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, will be able to produce 250,000 tons of renewable fuels per year while maintaining low emissions.
Under the agreement, Sulzer Chemtech, in cooperation with Duke Technologies LLC, will provide its BioFlux licensed technology, basic engineering packages (BEP) and technical services to the SMJREIC facility. These will enable the hydrotreatment of bio-based feedstocks and their selective conversion into high-quality SAF and renewable diesel.
The BioFlux technology is a cost-effective, energy- and resource-efficient solution for the production of more sustainable fuels and can reduce carbon intensity by up to 11%, compared to conventional hydrotreating units.
With an expected capacity of 250,000 tons, SMJREIC will be able to play a key role in driving the adoption of SAF in the aviation industry. In effect, it will contribute to meeting growing demands, given that SAF usage in 2022 already reached 150 million liters (approx. 120,000 tons).
Haji Mohamed Mohar, CEO at Vandelay Ventures Sdn Bhd, comments: “With our renewable fuels complex we aim to drive the decarbonization of the transportation as well as the manufacturing industries. We can achieve this with Sulzer Chemtech’s leading technology and expertise, as BioFlux will help us use more sustainable feedstocks at a large scale as well as minimize the environmental impact of biofuel production.”
Sander van Donk, Global Business Unit Head for Clean Fuels and Chemicals Licensing at Sulzer Chemtech, adds: “This is a truly ambitious project, and we are proud to be part of it to open the door to a net-zero carbon energy future. We look forward to leveraging our BioFlux technology and engineering capabilities to support one of the largest, low-carbon renewable fuels plants in South-East Asia.”