Samsung E&A signed a cooperation agreement with Korean Air to pursue sustainable aviation fuel projects in the United States, focusing on gasification technology that has yet to achieve widespread commercial success. The companies formalized their partnership November 20, with Samsung handling engineering and construction while Korean Air commits to long-term fuel purchases.
The partnership targets second-generation production using Fischer-Tropsch gasification to convert wood waste into jet fuel. However, the first small-scale commercial facility using this technology, Fulcrum Bioenergy, only commenced operation in 2022, and that company filed for bankruptcy in 2024.
Fischer-Tropsch and similar advanced pathways account for roughly 7% of announced global capacity through 2030, trailing far behind established hydroprocessed ester technology that dominates current production. While the Fischer-Tropsch process itself is fully commercial, the preceding processing steps and overall integration have yet to be fully commercialized.
Samsung E&A is evaluating participation in a US plant project, likely the $8 billion DG Fuels facility in Louisiana’s St. James Parish expected to produce 200 million gallons annually. That project has already secured offtake agreements with Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM, potentially limiting Korean Air’s role.
The airline began domestic SAF use in 2024 after becoming Korea’s first carrier to operate a sustainable-fuel-blended flight in 2017.
