Sweden – Uniper and South Africa’s Sasol have cancelled a 200MW Swedish project to produce renewable hydrogen-based aviation fuel, citing a lack of market development, slow regulations, and cost increases. SkyFuelH2 is the second synthetic aviation fuel development in Sweden to admit to headwinds this year.
Achieving the global climate targets requires high ambitions and large investments. SkyFuelH2 was a highly innovative industrial project by Uniper which aimed to establish a production facility for sustainable aviation fuel. Långsele, in Sollefteå, holds the perfect mix of electricity and biomass supply as well as suitable land areas.
By being able to supply up to 10% of the Swedish aviation industry’s annual fuel consumption with a sustainable alternative, SkyFuelH2 would contribute to enable the climate transition of the aviation industry.
On April 27, 2022, Uniper presented a letter of intent regarding SkyFuelH2 at a press conference in Sollefteå together with Minister of Enterprise Karl-Petter Thorwaldsson. The letter of intent was signed with Sollefteå municipality and was about further investigating the possibility of establishing SkyFuelH2 in Långsele.
By the end of 2023 South African Sasol ecoFT, experts in Fischer-Tropsch technology, decided to withdraw as a partner in the project due to a strategy change in their parent companyUniper’s focus now was to explore alternative solutions, including new partners for the project.
After thorough investigations and consultation processes, the ambition was to start the construction of the facility in 2026, to supply the aviation industry with sustainable aviation fuel by 2029. In October 2024 Juniper to discontinue the development of SkyFuelH2. The decision is based on a combination of challenging market conditions and increased costs, which means that the project is not currently considered commercially viable.
