JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corporation and Sumitomo Corporation (Sumitomo) executed consortium agreements to manage investment in the Louisiana Green Fuels BECCS projectat Port of Columbia, Caldwell Parish, Louisiana.

The Project is developing a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production plant with renewable Naphtha as a byproduct utilizing woody biomass waste, such as thinning, with the production capacity of 32 million gallons (120,000 kiloliters) per year and the scheduled commercial operation date in 2029.

The Project will convert woody biomass waste into synthesis gas, and then synthesize and upgrade it into SAF and Renewable Naphtha (RN). The Project is powered by a biomass-fired power plant using sawmill and other woody biomass waste attached with carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage (CCS) facility addressing CO2 emitted from the Project, both installed onsite and owned by the Project.

Sumitomo, through its subsidiary Sumitomo Corporation of Americas (SCOA) entered into Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with Strategic Biofuels on the Project in February 2024.

JX, through its subsidiary JX Nippon Oil Exploration (U.S.A.) Limited (NOEX USA), and SCOA will jointly establish a consortium Magnolia Sustainable Energy Partners (M-SEP) to manage and make investment in the Project. Additionally, SCOA and NOEX USA will explore further business opportunities in DACCS, BECCS, and other CCS and CDR fields by leveraging the Sumitomo Corporation Group's global initiatives in the CCUS sector and the abundant expertise and technological capabilities of the JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corporation Group.

Toshiya Nakahara, President, and CEO of JX, said: “JX is excited to join this journey with Strategic Biofuels and Sumitomo, who possess remarkable technical, project management, business, and financing expertise and leadership, to jointly lead this Project to a success leveraging on our expertise in CCS built at Petra Nova CCUS (*4) project and other projects. We believe CCS will play a vital role in energy transition and realization of carbon neutrality, and this Project also presents an excellent opportunity to enhance our capability for energy transition, including BECCS.”

Koji Aso, Managing Executive Officers of Sumitomo / Head of Energy Innovation Initiative We are deeply honored to have JX, which possesses abundant expertise and technological capabilities in the CCUS field through projects like the world's largest Petra Nova CCUS project, participate in this project. Together with Japanese companies possessing unique technologies, experiences, and knowledge in the decarbonization field, we will provide various functions and values not only in terms of funding but also in collaboration with public and private stakeholders in both Japan and the United States, contributing to the success of the project. Our group has designated the United States, the world's largest consumer of jet fuel, as one of the focus regions for our SAF business, and will contribute to decarbonizing the aviation industry through the expansion of the SAF supply chain by developing SAF production and sales businesses (including feedstocks for SAF) on a global scale, starting with this project.