In this episode, we talk to Sarah Ellerby, CEO of Nova Pangaea Technologies (NPT), a UK-based cleantech company that has created a patented technology called the REFNOVA®, to enable SAF production from agricultural and forestry waste.

Ellerby discusses:

1. NPT’s REFNOVA® technology, which processes non-food derived feedstocks such as sugarcane bagasse and wheat straw into SAF precursors.
2. The dual-product output of the REFNOVA® process: sustainable sugars for SAF production and biochar for soil enhancement and carbon sequestration.
3. Project Speedbird, a collaboration between Nova Pangaea Technologies, British Airways, and LanzaJet, which has secured £9 million in UK government funding.
4. The challenges of scaling SAF production, including the need for significant investment and the importance of a blended finance approach involving both public and private sectors.

Throughout the conversation, Ellerby emphasises the critical role of strategic partnerships and government support in advancing SAF production. She also shares NPT’s efforts to de-risk their technology and business model to attract larger investments needed for commercial-scale production.

Looking to the future, Ellerby outlines NPT’s goals for scaling up production to meet the UK’s SAF mandates, while acknowledging the challenges in funding and executing large-scale projects.

If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversation we had with Jimmy Samartzis, CEO of LanzaJet, who shares the company’s journey in developing the world’s first proven ATJ technology that converts ethanol into SAF and renewable diesel. Check it out here. 

Learn more about the innovators who are navigating the industry’s challenges to make sustainable aviation a reality, in our new book ‘Sustainability in the Air’. Click here to learn more.

Feel free to reach out via email to podcast@simpliflying.com. For more content on sustainable aviation, visit our website green.simpliflying.com and join the movement. It’s about time.

Links & More:

Our biomass refinement process - Nova Pangaea Technologies 

Project Speedbird wins £9m UK funding for SAF production - Biofuels International Magazine

New investment in Nova Pangaea Technologies added to IAG’s $865 million SAF commitment - GreenAir News 

LanzaJet plans to produce 1 billion gallons of SAF by 2030 - SimpliFlying