The four finalists of The Sky’s the Limit Challenge will receive up to CAD$2 million to develop their innovative solutions for sustainable aviation fuel
Vancouver, B.C. (May 29, 2019) – The Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, Minister of Natural Resources, today announced that Carbon Engineering Ltd. (CE), a Canadian clean energy company, has been selected to compete in the Government of Canada’s The Sky’s the Limit Challenge – a nationwide challenge issued to Canadians to develop the cleanest, most affordable, and sustainable aviation fuel. CE is one of four finalists chosen for the Green Aviation Fuels Innovation Competition, an 18-month competition which provides up to CAD$2 million apiece to four teams to produce the most economical and environmentally sustainable jet fuel. The winner will be awarded a CAD$5 million grand prize.
The Sky’s the Limit Challenge is the second of five planned challenges under Natural Resources Canada’s CAD$75 million Impact Canada Initiative, which is helping to drive innovation and accelerate the clean growth economy. It is designed to stimulate the development of sustainable aviation fuel supply chains so that the Canadian aviation industry can further reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and lower the flying public’s environmental footprint.
“This Impact Canada challenge is bringing out the best of Canadian ingenuity to support innovation in the aviation industry,” said Minister Sohi. “I want to congratulate Carbon Engineering on becoming one of the Challenge finalists, creating cleaner aviation fuel to grow Canada’s clean economy and create good, middle-class jobs for workers.”
From a pilot plant in Squamish, British Columbia, CE has successfully developed and demonstrated its AIR TO FUELS™ technology that converts atmospheric carbon dioxide, water, and green electricity into ultra-low carbon fuels. These fuels can be produced with significantly less land and water than biofuels, are cleaner burning than fossil fuels, and can power existing cars, trucks and airplanes without any modifications. CE’s project for the Green Aviation Fuels Innovation Competition will utilize this AIR TO FUELS™ technology to produce ultra-low carbon jet fuel.
“The aviation industry is going to be one of the toughest sectors to decarbonize,” said Steve Oldham, CEO of CE. “Developing affordable and scalable solutions for sustainable jet fuel is therefore going to be key to achieving greater greenhouse gas emissions reductions and to meeting climate change targets. At CE, we’ve developed a home-grown Canadian solution for jet fuel that is scalable, green, cost competitive, and feasible, and we are very much looking forward to presenting this solution in the Sky’s the Limit Challenge.”
The Sky’s the Limit Challenge consists of two competitions: First, the Green Aviation Fuels Innovation Competition provides up to CAD$2 million apiece for four teams who develop the most innovative solutions, which, in turn, will support their next endeavour: an 18-month competition to produce the most economical and environmentally sustainable aviation fuel and win the $5-million grand prize; and second, the Cross-Canada Flight Competition, where the first participant to fuel a Canadian commercial flight using a minimum 10 percent blend of made-in-Canada biojet fuel will win $1 million.
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About Carbon Engineering (CE):
Founded in 2009, CE is a Canadian-based clean energy company leading the commercialization of groundbreaking technology that captures CO2 directly from the atmosphere, and a second technology that synthesizes it into clean, affordable transportation fuels. From a pilot plant in Squamish, B.C., CE has been removing CO2 from the atmosphere since 2015 and converting it into fuels since 2017.
