2026-10-09
- Q8Aviation selected ETFuels as the proposed long-term supplier of power-to-liquid e-SAF (electro-Sustainable Aviation Fuel) from Project Kings Road Humber, reported on 2026-10-08.
- The planned methanol-to-jet facility at the Port of Immingham, UK, is designed for 70 kilotonnes per year and targets UK and European aviation demand.
- Methanol feedstock is to come from ETFuels’ US e-methanol production portfolio, which uses behind-the-meter renewable power.
- The two companies are negotiating a binding long-term offtake agreement; the deal is not yet final, and ETFuels says the selection brings the project closer to FID (Final Investment Decision).
Q8Aviation has selected ETFuels as the proposed long-term supplier of e-SAF from Project Kings Road Humber, a planned methanol-to-jet facility at the Port of Immingham on the Humber in the United Kingdom. According to Hydrocarbon Processing on 2026-10-08, the parties are negotiating a binding long-term offtake agreement, so the arrangement is not yet final. The facility is designed to produce 70 kilotonnes per year of e-SAF for UK and European aviation markets. ETFuels CEO Lara Naqushbandi described the selection as a major commercial milestone that brings the project closer to FID.
Project Kings Road Humber is being developed by ETFuels, an Ireland-headquartered e-fuels developer, at the Port of Immingham. The core process is methanol-to-jet, in which e-methanol, made from renewable hydrogen and captured carbon dioxide, is converted into jet-fuel-range hydrocarbons. The article describes the product as power-to-liquid sustainable aviation fuel.
The methanol is not produced locally. It is planned to come from ETFuels’ US e-methanol production portfolio, which is described as using behind-the-meter renewable power (generation connected directly to the consuming facility) and benefiting from US hydrogen production incentives. An earlier report by Hydrogen Insight on 2026-07-17 stated that the methanol is planned to be made in Texas and processed into jet fuel in the UK.
The site’s advantages are reported to include deep-water access, existing fuel infrastructure, and a direct connection to the UK’s roughly 2,000 km aviation-fuel pipeline network, which is relevant for moving finished e-SAF to airports.
Q8Aviation said it evaluated potential partners on project maturity, feedstock strategy, cost competitiveness, compliance robustness and deliverability. Adam Harrison, Commercial Director at Q8Aviation, said the market is shifting from policy goals to commercial execution and that the company hopes to help build e-SAF capacity for its customers’ decarbonisation goals. ETFuels expects to deliver compliant e-SAF at scale and at globally competitive cost, subject to verifying its technical, commercial and regulatory assumptions.
- Capacity: 70 kilotonnes per year of e-SAF, according to the 2026-10-08 report.
- Pipeline access: direct connection to the roughly 2,000 km UK aviation-fuel pipeline network.
- Contract status: binding long-term offtake under negotiation; value, volume and term were not disclosed in the report.
- Earlier reporting: Biofuels Digest, citing GasWorld on 2026-07-21, described the same project as a 35,000 t/y facility with an expected investment of $672 million, an FID targeted for 2027 and production by 2030. This differs from the 70 kt/y figure in the October report, and the sources reviewed do not explain the difference.
- US e-methanol project: the July report cited design output of up to 120,000 tons of e-methanol per year, with an FID possible before the end of 2026.
- Technology partners named in July: John Cockerill electrolyzers and Johnson Matthey e-methanol technology and synthesis catalysts.
Timeline
- 2026-07-17 — Hydrogen Insight reports that ETFuels selected a site at an English port and renamed the project Kings Road Humber.
- 2026-07-21 — Biofuels Digest, citing GasWorld, reports the scale, investment and schedule of the Immingham project.
- 2026-10-08 — Q8Aviation’s selection of ETFuels as proposed long-term e-SAF supplier is reported.
- FID target — 2027 and production by 2030, according to the July reporting.
Note
Methanol-to-jet refers to a route that converts methanol into olefins and then, through oligomerization and hydrotreating, into jet-range hydrocarbons. An offtake agreement is a long-term contract to purchase a facility’s output on pre-agreed terms.