In a world-first for Finland, carbon dioxide (CO2) captured directly from the air is being used to develop sustainable aviation fuel (e-SAF), marking a key step in the push for carbon-neutral aviation.
Soletair Power, a Finnish direct air capture (DAC) company, has delivered a batch of CO2 extracted from ambient air to Liquid Sun, a CO2 utilisation specialist, to help refine synthetic aviation fuel feedstocks.
The project, taking place in Tampere, Finland, is part of Liquid Sun’s industrial demonstration of eSAF technology, using low-temperature electrolysis to convert CO2 into fuel.
“Quite a milestone! To my knowledge, this is one of the first experiments in Finland, and perhaps even the Nordic region, where air-captured CO2 is being refined into e-SAF feedstocks,” said Pasi Keinänen, CEO of Liquid Sun. “By advancing this technology, we’re not just accelerating the commercial viability of e-fuels, we’re creating a pathway for Finland to establish itself as a global e-fuel powerhouse.”
Soletair Power specialises in modular DAC technology that captures CO2 from the air flowing through buildings and industrial systems. While DAC has primarily been used for carbon offsetting, this project demonstrates its potential in sustainable fuel production, where CO2 is repurposed rather than stored.
“We capture CO2, and the captured CO2 needs to be utilised,” said Petri Laakso, CEO of Soletair Power. “This partnership with Liquid Sun will help us explore the potential of Soletair Power’s DAC technology to drive innovation in sustainable aviation fuel production. We’re thrilled about this.”
Finland is actively advancing CCUS as part of its Finnish Climate Change Act, revised in 2022, legally binding the country to reach carbon neutrality by 2035.
The country has plans for 13 carbon capture projects with a focus on using biogenic CO2 from industries like forestry and waste incineration to create valuable materials like plastics, chemicals and fuels.
Finland is also working with neighbouring Norway to explore the permanent storage of CO2 beneath the seabed. This aligns with Norway’s ‘Longship’ project, which includes the Northern Lights CO2 storage facility – the first cross-border, open-source CO2 transport and storage infrastructure network in Europe.
