Ready to take-off: Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) 

We aspire to be the first commercial SAF producer in Germany and have the best foundation:

We have been fuel experts since 1893

With Carless' invention of "Petrol" in 1893, we look back on a very long tradition in fuels production.

Being a pioneer is in our business

Our founding father Haltermann refined crude tar from the Hamburg (Germany) gas works and became a pioneer in the development of hydrocarbon specialities. At the same time, in the late 19th century, Carless, Capel & Leonard was the leading British source of highly refined fuel.

We have experience with being sustainable

Our expertise and experience is reflected in our growing sustainable product portfolio - from bio-based fuels to sustainable hydrocarbons and chemicals, products that provide our customers with sustainable alternatives and deliver significant reductions in GHG emissions.

We put our minds to work

We put our ideas into practice by investing in modern technologies and the latest equipment to enable our sustainability transition. Our new hydrogenation plant and the supply of certified electricity from renewable sources are just a few examples.

For us, sustainability is not a trend, 

but a social responsibility and a business imperative. Back in the early 1990s, we were one of the first medium-sized chemical companies to introduce the principles and practices of the Responsible Care programme and since then, we have been implementing sustainability step by step in all areas.

Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production routes:

Fischer-Tropsch process (Biomass-to-Liquid - BTL):
With this large-scale method, any carbon-rich material can be used. It is therefore particularly suitable for processing biomass from which paraffin can be produced.

Alcohol-to-Jet (ATJ) process:
In this technology, alcohol is produced from plant-based, predominantly sugar-containing  materials. This alcohol is then dehydrated and converted into paraffin via standard refinery processes.

Power-to-Liquid (PTL) technology:
Renewable energy from the sun, water or wind, CO₂ and water can be used to produce a synthetic gas, which in turn is used to produce liquid paraffin through synthesis and fractionation in a Fischer-Tropsch plant.

Sun-to-Liquid Technology:
In this technology, sunlight plays the decisive role - in a solar reactor, concentrated solar rays split a metal oxide into metal and oxygen ions. Carbon dioxide and water vapour are then added to form the synthetic gas, which is then converted into alternative paraffin using the Fischer-Tropsch process. 

Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (HVO) process:
Hydrogenated vegetable oils or HVOs are vegetable oils that are converted into hydrocarbons by means of a catalytic reaction with the addition of hydrogen (hydrogenation). HVOs can be used as an admixture in fuels or can replace them completely.

HEFA (Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids) methodology:
In this process, SAF is produced on the basis of esters and fatty acids. The fats and oils, consisting for example of used fats or food waste, are first hydrogenated. The resulting oil can be refined into paraffin in a similar way to crude oil.