Izzy Thomas-Horton outlines the potential of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in driving economic growth and job creation in West Cumbria, where Carbon Neutral Fuels (CNF) is developing a green fuel facility supported by £7.4 million in government funding
It’s easy to get caught up in the detail of sectoral targets and net-zero deadlines, but decarbonisation is also about opportunity. We’re not just reducing emissions; we’re building new systems with new priorities. The shift to a low-carbon economy is the greatest chance in generations to create a fairer, greener society where lasting, well-paid, and environmentally responsible jobs become the norm for everyone.
Nowhere is this more visible than in West Cumbria, where Carbon Neutral Fuels (CNF) is preparing to deliver a landmark project that combines climate action with economic renewal.
Backed by £7.4 million in grant funding from the UK Government’s Advanced Fuels Fund, CNF is advancing plans for a state-of-the-art green fuel facility near the Port of Workington. Online in 2031, this facility will produce Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) and is expected to generate more than 2,000 jobs during its construction phase, sustaining over 50 full-time, skilled roles once operational. These are not short-term wins but long-term, future-proofed opportunities that make the West Cumbrian coastline an integral part of the new green economy.
A proud industrial legacy
The choice of West Cumbria is more than strategic; it’s symbolic. Having lived in the area, CNF’s Co-founder, Sophie, knows that this county has long powered Britain. Much of the coal that fueled our Industrial Revolution was mined from its hills. A century later, Cumbria became the heart of the nuclear age when Queen Elizabeth II opened the world’s first commercial nuclear power station at Calder Hall in 1956. Known as the ‘Energy Coast’, since the 2000s, the landscape is now home to multiple renewables projects delivering the new age of clean, green power.
Today, CNF’s sustainable aviation fuel project writes the next chapter in that industrial story. At full capacity, the Workington facility will produce 25,000 tonnes of green jet fuel annually, reducing lifecycle emissions by up to 89% compared to traditional fossil jet fuel.
From coal to nuclear to clean aviation, Britain’s Energy Coast continues to show how regional industry can shape national progress.
Aviation’s challenge and opportunity
The aviation sector is an unlikely hero in any sustainability story. Without intervention, it’s projected to be responsible for around 22% of global carbon dioxide emissions by 2050. Batteries and hydrogen may help other forms of transport, but for long-haul flights, the weight and energy density challenges remain unsolved. Zero- emission aircraft aren’t likely to be adopted at scale before 2050. That’s where eSAF comes in.
eSAF (sustainable aviation fuel made using electricity) uses just low-carbon electricity, water, and captured carbon dioxide to make jet fuel that works in today’s aircraft without modification. For governments, it’s both a climate breakthrough and an industrial opportunity. For many airlines, alongside biofuels, it’s one of the few realistic options for meeting near-term climate commitments.
The Department for Transport estimates that low-carbon fuel production could add up to £5 billion to the UK economy by 2050. That’s why, in July 2025, it invested £63m across 17 UK projects to deliver clean fuel for the industry, with CNF’s ASAP-DAC consortium receiving £6m, the largest award for an e-fuels project in this funding round. The scale of this support builds upon their previous win in 2023 of £1.4m and reflects strong government confidence in both the technology and CNF’s vision.
As the MP for Workington and Whitehaven, Josh MacAlister, put it:
‘The £6m government funding boost announced today is a real vote of confidence in our area and it will help to fast-track the project to a final investment decision.’
Such backing is critical. Government investment not only signals trust but also unlocks private capital, ensuring the UK can compete internationally as more countries move to establish SAF production. For West Cumbria, it means momentum; for the UK, it marks another step towards Jet Zero by 2050.
According to CNF, Workington was chosen not just for its infrastructure, but for the ambition palpable within the community. The energy transition can’t only be about abstract policy and emissions curves; it has to mean something on the ground. ASAP-DAC is designed to deliver more than fuel. It’s about enabling long-term, well-paid jobs, up-skilling for the local community, and creating a pipeline of skilled work that lasts.
How it works
At the heart of the Workington facility is ASAP-DAC: Advancing Sustainable Aviation via Power-to-Liquid and Direct Air Capture. The process brings together a world-first combination of technologies at commercial scale.
Here’s how it works:
- Electricity + water + CO2: The plant uses renewable electricity to power Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cells (SOEC). These convert water and carbon dioxide into syngas, which consists of hydrogen and carbon monoxide.
- CO2 capture: Around 90% of the carbon dioxide will come from biogenic sources such as farm waste, and 10% directly from the atmosphere using Direct Air Capture technology.
- Fuel synthesis: The syngas generated by SOEC is then combined in a Fischer- Tropsch reactor to create long-chain hydrocarbons.
- Refining: These hydrocarbons are then refined into synthetic kerosene, certified under ASTM D7566, suitable for blending with Jet A-1 aviation fuel.
The result: 25,000 tonnes of certified eSAF per year, delivering an 89% lifecycle emissions reduction compared with fossil fuels.
This isn’t a lab experiment. It’s a first-of-its-kind commercial facility designed to meet over 35% of the UK’s eSAF mandate in its first year of operation.
A national model
What’s taking shape in West Cumbria offers a model for the rest of the country. It shows that when government policy aligns with private innovation, the UK can build the industries of the future on the foundations of its industrial past.
As demand for SAF accelerates internationally, Britain faces a clear choice: import fuels and forfeit the economic value, or manufacture them domestically, creating jobs, skills, and resilience in regions that need them most.
The Workington project demonstrates that with the right support, the UK can lead.
The future of CNF
Workington is just the beginning for CNF. Aviation is their first focus, but their technology has the potential to serve other hard-to-decarbonise sectors like shipping in the years ahead. Wherever it takes them, the CNF ethos goes beyond clean fuel and into the communities they partner with, giving communities like West Cumbria a stake in a cleaner, fairer future.
This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International.
