Manitoba, federal governments pledge nearly $3M for study on sustainable aviation fuel facility

The Manitoba and federal governments say they're spending $2.9 million on an engineering study for a planned sustainable aviation fuel processing facility near the city of Portage la Prairie, Man.

That money will be spent over two years on Azure Sustainable Fuels Corporation's front-end engineering design study for the processing facility, officials said at a Tuesday news conference.

Premier Heather Stefanson said the facility will use renewable hydroelectric energy and process sustainable aviation fuel sources from canola and soybeans, which will include opportunities to source directly from local farming communities.

"It is a made-in-Manitoba solution, providing a direct link between agriculture and sustainable energy that paves the way for the economy of tomorrow," Stefanson said.

The fuel would be used in jet airliners. It must be blended in with conventional petroleum, according to current Canadian standards.

Once the engineering study is complete, Stefanson said her government wants to work with Azure to "break down any barriers" to completing the facility. It'll need a number of approvals, including an environmental assessment.

The project is expected to support 1,500 construction jobs and more than 150 direct jobs once the facility is in operation, she said. Azure documents distributed to media said the site would be located about nine kilometres west of Portage la Prairie, adjacent to the Poplar Bluff Industrial Park.

Manitoba Agriculture Minister Derek Johnson said the benefits the project would bring to the province's agricultural sector could have ripple effects.

"Farmers benefit from new market opportunities, and as a result they lower their own supply chain risk," Johnson said. "Communities benefit through good jobs, new residents, new revenue and new optimism that we can do these great things together."

The facility is anticipated to cost about $1.9 billion to build, and expected to produce onebillion litres of sustainable aviation fuel per year using primarily Canadian feedstock products, the province said in a news release.

Azure chief executive officer Douglas Cole said the Manitoba location provides several advantages, including proximity to rail lines, access to clean renewable electricity anda wealth of agricultural production.

"If you want to be competitive in this space, you need to have feedstock," Cole said.

"We're close to some of the largest amount of feedstock here on the continent."

Kam Blight, reeve of the rural municipality of Portage la Prairie, and Sharilyn Knox, mayor of the city of Portage la Prairie, said their communities were excited about the future opportunities the project would bring about.

"Trust me when I say that we still have our eyes on the horizon and we're actively working to attract even more world-class, innovative industries to our region, all the while working to help bring this project to the finish line," Knox said at the news conference.

The planned facility, which is slated to be ready by 2028, would be the largest manufacturing facilityin the Portage la Prairie area since the Roquette pea processing plant started operating a few years ago.

Premier Stefanson saidconstruction of the Azure facility is projected to have a total impact on the Manitoba economy of $2 billion.

The first year of operations is expected to create more than $500 million in economic output and sustain hundreds of jobs throughout Manitoba. The facility is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by roughly 2.6 million tonnes each year, the province said.

WATCH | Sustainable aviation fuel facility planned for Portage la Prairie:

Manitoba, federal governments pledge nearly $3M for study on sustainable aviation fuel facility

1 year ago

Duration 1:30

The Manitoba and federal governments say theyre spending $2.9 million on an engineering study for a sustainable aviation fuel processing facility planned for near the city of Portage la Prairie, Man.