Colombia's Ecopetrol partners on green hydrogen-based synthetic SAF project

Colombian state oil company Ecopetrol has signed an agreement with German development agency GIZ to study the construction of a pilot plant for e-sustainable aviation fuel at its Cartagena refinery, leveraging green hydrogen as feedstock and potentially positioning Colombia as a regional leader in sustainable aviation fuel production.

The partners will carry out feasibility and engineering studies over the next 24 months for a power-to-liquid facility to produce e-SAF, Ecopetrol said late last week.

The proposed plant would use infrastructure from Ecopetrol's Coral project, under construction at the Cartagena refinery and expected to produce up to 800 metric tons of green hydrogen annually.

GIZ will provide technical assistance and expertise in power-to-X and hydrogen technologies as part of the collaboration, with funding from Germany's federal government's PtX program supporting the feasibility study.

The partnership reflects growing international interest in developing overseas hydrogen and e-fuel supply chains, particularly as European importers seek alternatives to Russian gas.

Germany has increasingly invested in overseas green hydrogen projects to shore up future fuel supplies, with its previous national hydrogen strategy anticipating that up to 70% of its 2030 hydrogen demand would be met through imports.

Energy transition push

E-SAFs are produced by combining green hydrogen with captured CO2 through a chemical synthesis process. Ecopetrol already produces small batches of green hydrogen from a pilot setup at Cartagena, fueling a bus fleet.

The Coral project is expected to add a 5-MW green hydrogen plant powered by a 22-MW solar farm that is already operational at the refinery. The US-made electrolyzer began installation last year, with plans to replace a portion of the refinery's gray hydrogen consumption.

"This is a combination of assets, technical capabilities, and international cooperation that will accelerate technological validation and reduce risks in future scaling," Ecopetrol said in a statement. "The project integrates Ecopetrol's historical experience in the production of fuels and biofuels, now applied to the development of non-fossil synthetic liquid fuels."

Under its low-carbon hydrogen strategy, Ecopetrol plans to produce green, blue and white hydrogen to slash Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions by 50% by 2050.

"With this alliance, Ecopetrol strengthens its low-emission hydrogen and synthetic fuel production capabilities, consolidates its leadership in the energy transition, and positions Colombia as a benchmark in the development of sustainable aviation fuels in Latin America," Andres Felipe Camacho, leader of Ecopetrol's Low Emission Energy team, said.

Colombia has emerged as a prospective green hydrogen producer due to its strong renewable energy resources and access to international shipping routes, attracting interest from potential European importers.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed SAF California at 988.22 cents/gal and SAF (H-S) CA (credits det) at 494.43 cents/gal June 22, based on a spread of neat SAF to Jet Kero LA CA pipeline of 195.12 cents/gal. Platts considered SAF CIF NWE with transportation costs.