American Airlines, Google and McKinsey Back Infinium’s Next-Generation eSAF Project
AeroMorning – September 22, 2026
On September 22, 2026, the Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance (SABA)—representing over 35 companies with ~$500M in aggregated SAF certificate demand—announced long-term purchase commitments supporting Infinium Energy’s Project Atlas, a planned eSAF production facility in Texas. Alongside American Airlines, Google, and McKinsey & Company, participating members include Bain & Company and AVEVA.
Facility Specs & Technology
Output: ~100,000 metric tons/year, targeting a 95% carbon intensity reduction versus fossil jet fuel.
Pathway: Power-to-Liquid (PtL) eSAF using captured/waste CO₂ and renewable electricity to make synthetic hydrocarbons, differing from bio-based feedstocks such as used cooking oil or agricultural products.
Impact: Abates >212,000 metric tons of CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e), equal to >3,500 JFK–LAX commercial flights. Initial production targets ~2029, subject to financing and development.
Comparison: Infinium’s Project Roadrunner, also in Texas and under construction, targets ~23,000 tonnes/year and 2027 operations. Atlas represents a major scale-up.
Global Reach: The project will serve voluntary U.S. corporate demand via SABA SAF certificates and European regulatory markets for RFNBO-compliant eSAF under the EU’s ReFuelEU Aviation framework.
The Book-and-Claim Structure & Roles
Project Atlas utilizes a book-and-claim mechanism separating the physical fuel flow from environmental attribute allocation:
Infinium: Develops the facility and supplies the production technology. As the fuel producer, Infinium could be eligible for applicable production tax credits, subject to the relevant statutory requirements.
SABA Members (Google, McKinsey, Bain, AVEVA, etc.): Purchase SAF certificates (SAFc) to allocate Scope 3 emissions—defined as indirect greenhouse gas emissions that occur in a company’s value chain, including business travel and employee commuting. This allows companies that do not operate aircraft or buy jet fuel themselves to provide financial support and demand for SAF without requiring physical fuel delivery to their flights.
American Airlines: Jointly submitted the proposal with Infinium, acts as the physical offtaker, and manages logistics, physical delivery, and aircraft use.
Broader U.S. Landscape & Regulations
DOE Framework: The U.S. Department of Energy’s 2024 Pathways to Commercial Liftoff report highlights three billion gallons of potential annual domestic SAF capacity by 2030, emphasizing investment, carbon-accounting, feedstock traceability, and book-and-claim systems. The DOE’s updated 45ZCF-GREET model calculates lifecycle greenhouse-gas emissions.
Section 45Z Tax Credit: The Section 45Z Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit covers qualifying domestic clean transportation fuel produced and sold between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2029. The credit is claimed by the eligible fuel producer and is linked to the fuel’s emissions characteristics. 2025 legislation requires fuels produced after December 31, 2025 to derive exclusively from U.S., Mexican, or Canadian feedstocks. Importantly, the 2025 legislative changes did not explicitly exclude Infinium Power-to-Liquid eSAF as a technology category; eligibility depends on whether the specific production pathway and its feedstocks satisfy statutory and emissions-accounting requirements. IRS (Internal Revenue Service) guidance issued on September 8, 2026 provided updated 2026 emissions-rate tables.
Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS): Administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the program sets renewable-fuel volume requirements and uses Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) as compliance credits, separate from the 45Z rules.
Strategic Significance
Project Atlas combines private corporate demand, airline logistics, project finance, federal tax incentives (45Z), the RFS regulatory framework, and carbon-accounting to push next-generation synthetic aviation fuel from early commercial projects toward industrial scale.
Source: Aeromorning
