Biofuels company plans to supply shipper with 3 million gallons of renewable jet fuel per year.
Red Rock Biofuels LLC, based in Fort Collins, Colorado, has announced that it will produce approximately 3 million gallons of low-carbon, renewable jet fuel per year for FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp.
The agreement runs through 2024, with first delivery expected in 2017. FedEx joins Southwest Airlines in purchasing Red Rock’s total available volume of jet fuel, Red Rock says.
Red Rock’s first refinery, funded in part by a $70 million grant from the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Energy and Navy, is scheduled to break ground this fall in Lakeview, Oregon, and will convert approximately 140,000 dry tons of woody biomass into 15 million gallons per year of renewable jet, diesel and naphtha fuels, the company reports.
Red Rock says that in addition to reducing lifecycle carbon emissions, the production process will reduce the risk of forest fires in the western U.S. by decreasing the amount of waste woody biomass in surrounding forests.
“As we look to break ground on our refinery in the coming months, we’re thrilled to have signed a contract with FedEx as they look to diversify their fuel supply and reduce emissions throughout their aviation unit,” says Terry Kulesa, co-founder and CEO of Red Rock. “With our total jet fuel capacity now sold to FedEx and Southwest Airlines, we are building a suite of powerful, global customers that continue to commit to the future of alternative fuels in a market where oil prices are low, providing true validation of our business model and mission.”
This customer announcement comes on the heels of Red Rock’s strategic partnership with Flagship Ventures, a venture capital and venture creation firm focused on innovations in healthcare and sustainability, for financial and strategic expertise on securing additional partnerships, funding and customers.
Red Rock Biofuels says its technology platform utilizes a gasification process feeding a Fischer-Tropsch conversion and product upgrading process to refine waste biomass residues into high value, lower carbon renewable jet, diesel and naphtha fuels.
The company says it is able to produce a renewable, ASTM-specification jet and diesel fuel at cost parity with conventional fuels.