US drive to make green jet fuel with ethanol stalled by CO2 pipeline foes

The US drive to develop sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) using ethanol could be slowed because of growing opposition to proposed pipelines that would curb greenhouse gas emissions from ethanol plants by capturing carbon dioxide and carrying it away to other states for storage. Ethanol industry players say the developments raise questions about future growth for U.S. producers of the biofuel, including POET, Valero and others, who have been banking on proposed carbon capture and storage pipeline projects across the heartland. These are needed to lower ethanol’s climate impact enough for the fuel to qualify as a feedstock for SAF under the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). President Joe Biden's administration has committed to producing 3b gallons of SAF annually by 2030 and 35b gallons by 2050. The goal is to decarbonize the airline industry while also supporting the ethanol sector and the corn farmers that supply it. The proposed pipeline projects would siphon millions of tons of CO2 off Midwest ethanol processing plants and move the gas to other states for underground injection. Some residents along the pipeline routes worry the pipelines could spring deadly leaks or that their land will be seized to build the projects. Last month, Omaha-based Navigator CO2 Ventures canceled its proposed pipeline. Two others underway from Iowa-based Summit Carbon Solutions and Denver-based Wolf Carbon Solutions face permitting setbacks and public resistance.<br/>