Dragonfly taps Axens for modular SAF refineries in Africa, Caribbean

French technology provider Axens has agreed to license its vegan hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids process technology to UAE clean energy company Dragonfly for the development of multiple sustainable aviation fuel production facilities across Africa and the Caribbean, the companies said June 10.

The collaboration will see Dragonfly deploy Axens' hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids pathway in modular refinery units designed to convert waste cooking oils, animal fats and vegetable oils into SAF, targeting markets where traditional large-scale infrastructure has proven uneconomical or logistically challenging.

Axens will supply integrated catalyst and adsorbent solutions, proprietary equipment and operational support services as part of the licensing agreement. At the same time, Dragonfly will handle project execution through its modular design platform, which the company said can deliver refineries at one-tenth the scale of conventional facilities.

Licensing model

The partnership follows a similar structure to recent Axens collaborations, including agreements with US-based XCF Global in April and Southern Energy Renewables for biomass-to-SAF projects in Louisiana. Under those deals, Axens retained direct licensing relationships with end customers while partnering with project developers to deploy and execute.

Dragonfly said its approach combines in-house fabrication of modular units with guaranteed feedstock supply and digital supply chain authentication, aiming to reduce both capital costs and carbon intensity compared with traditional refinery models. The company's refineries are designed to co-locate within existing terminals or refineries to create localized biofuel streams from regional waste.

"Our highly-proven proprietary process, adopted by a wide range of operators all over the world and taking advantage of our latest catalyst developments, delivering full-SAF yield is a perfect match for Dragonfly's projects and boosts their profitability," Axens CEO Quentin Debuisschert said in a statement.

Dragonfly CEO Karl Feilder said the partnership would enable the company to "deliver world-class solutions at a scale that is 10 times smaller, leveraging shorter upstream and downstream supply chains."

Navigate a challenging complex

The agreement comes as SAF producers face mounting pressure to scale output amid tightening decarbonization mandates in Europe and North America, while navigating persistent challenges about feedstock availability, project financing and cost competitiveness with conventional jet fuel.

HEFA-based SAF, which uses waste oils and fats as feedstock, remains the dominant production pathway globally but faces supply constraints as demand for lipid-based feedstocks rises across multiple sectors. Industry participants have increasingly pointed to the need for diversified pathways, including alcohol-to-jet and power-to-liquids routes, to meet long-term aviation decarbonization targets.

Axens, a unit of IFP Group, has licensed more than 3,000 industrial units globally and provides technologies spanning oil and biomass conversion, natural gas treatment and carbon capture.

Dragonfly is developing a distributed platform of modular refineries to produce SAF and hydrotreated vegetable oil from lipid-based waste. The company said its compact, factory-built units are designed for faster deployment and lower infrastructure requirements compared with traditional refineries.

The companies did not disclose financial terms, project timelines or specific site locations for the planned facilities.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, last assessed SAF California at 1035.1 cents/gal and SAF (H-S) CA (credits det) at 541.24 cents/gal on June 9, based on a spread of neat SAF to Jet Kero LA CA pipeline of 190.06 cents/gal.