METAfuels Secures €1.92 Million Dutch Government Grant to Advance Rotterdam e-SAF Project

Metafuels, a Swiss aviation technology company developing proprietary sustainable fuel technologies, has secured grant funding.

Metafuels’ Dutch subsidiary, Metafuels Nederland B.V., has been awarded a €1.92 million grant. The grant comes from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) under the TSE Industry Studies – Hydrogen & Green Chemistry programme (GroenvermogenNL), supporting the continued development of its Turbe synthetic sustainable aviation fuel (e-SAF) project in the Port of Rotterdam.

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The grant will support critical project development activities through to final investment decision (FID), including front-end engineering and design (FEED), permitting and consents, and commercial development. The Turbe project is being developed by Metafuels Nederland B.V. and will be located at the Evos terminal in the Port of Rotterdam.

The award recognises the strength of Metafuels’ proprietary methanol-to-jet technology, aerobrew, and its potential to deliver scalable, cost-competitive e-SAF aligned with Dutch and European climate objectives.

Advancing a flagship European e-SAF project

Turbe will be the first commercial deployment of Metafuels’ aerobrew technology and a blueprint for future large-scale facilities. The project is targeting production from 2030 onwards, in line with the introduction of e-SAF sub-mandates under ReFuelEU Aviation.

Located at Evos Rotterdam, the project benefits from access to established methanol infrastructure, multimodal logistics, and a highly skilled industrial workforce—key enablers for scaling synthetic fuel production in Europe. The development aligns closely with the Port of Rotterdam’s ambition to transform into a leading hub for low-carbon fuels and energy transition infrastructure.

From technology breakthrough to industrial deployment

The grant comes at a pivotal moment for Metafuels as it transitions from technology development to commercial-scale deployment. In recent months, the company has achieved a series of major milestones:

• $24 million funding round led by UVC Partners, with participation from Energy Impact Partners, Contrarian Ventures, RockCreek, Verve Ventures, and Fortescue Ventures, supporting the scale-up of its technology and project pipeline.

• Award of FEED contract to McDermott Netherlands for the Turbe facility, marking a critical step towards FID and industrial execution.

• Installation of its methanol-to-jet demonstration plant at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) in Switzerland, now preparing for operation.

• Expansion of its European project footprint, including development activities in the Netherlands and Denmark.

Together, these milestones position Metafuels at the forefront of Europe’s emerging e-SAF industry, with a clear pathway from demonstration to first-of-a-kind commercial plants and beyond.

A scalable pathway to aviation decarbonisation

Metafuels’ approach centres on the methanol-to-jet pathway, which converts renewable methanol into drop-in jet fuel compatible with existing aircraft and infrastructure. Unlike conventional SAF pathways reliant on limited feedstocks such as waste oils, methanol-based e-SAF offers a highly scalable route to meeting long-term aviation demand. When produced using renewable electricity, green hydrogen and captured carbon, it can deliver up to 90% lower lifecycle emissions compared to fossil kerosene.

Metafuels’ aerobrew technology is designed for cost leadership, achieving high conversion efficiency and enabling more competitive production economics at scale. As regulatory frameworks such as ReFuelEU Aviation drive rapid growth in SAF demand from 2030 onwards, scalable synthetic fuel pathways will be essential to meeting both climate targets and aviation’s long-term growth.

Saurabh Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer of Metafuels, said: “Securing this support from RVO is a strong validation of both our technology and our approach to scaling e-SAF production, and the merits of the Turbe project. Rotterdam is one of Europe’s most important energy and industrial hubs, and an ideal location to deliver large-scale synthetic fuel projects. This grant enables us to accelerate Turbe towards FID and make commercial e-SAF production in Europe a reality.”

The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) helps entrepreneurs and organisations to invest, develop and expand their businesses and projects both in the Netherlands and abroad. It is a government agency which is part of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs.

About Metafuels

Metafuels is a Zurich-based aviation technology company developing proprietary sustainable fuel technologies, with an initial focus on synthetic aviation fuel. Metafuels’ aerobrew process converts renewable methanol into jet fuel with ultra-high carbon efficiency, delivering up to 90% lower lifecycle emissions than fossil kerosene. The company’s fuels are fully compatible with existing aircraft and airport infrastructure, providing a direct, scalable pathway to aviation decarbonisation.

For more information, visit https://metafuels.ch/

About Metafuels Nederland B.V.

Metafuels Nederland B.V. is the Dutch subsidiary of Metafuels and is developing the Turbe project. Turbe will be the first commercial deployment of Metafuels’ aerobrew technology and a blueprint for future large-scale facilities. The project is targeting production from 2030 onwards, in line with the intro