Gevo’s Net-Zero 1 reaches key milestone for US DOE loan guarantee

Gevo Inc. announced Aug. 7 that its Net-Zero 1 ethanol-to-jet project has been invited by the U.S. DOE to the due-diligence and term-sheet negotiation phase for a $950 million loan guarantee under the Title 17 Clean Energy Financing Program.

The invitation was based on DOE’s determination that Gevo’s Net-Zero 1 project is highly qualified and suitable for a loan guarantee from the energy department.

This key milestone marks the successful completion of the Phase II application and diligence process, which Gevo publicly announced Jan. 19.

Most importantly, this milestone signifies the commencement of the underwriting phase for the debt-financing process.

“We believe that reaching this stage with the DOE is a critical milestone and illustrative of Gevo’s progress in developing Net-Zero 1,” said Patrick Gruber, CEO of Gevo. “We are excited to be working with the DOE on a process that supports our mission to deliver sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to the marketplace.”

The Net-Zero 1 plant is expected to have capacity of 65 million gallons per year of sustainable aviation fuel and other hydrocarbons, as well as approximately 1.5 billion pounds of high-value nutritional products on a wet basis annually.

Electricity needed to power the plant is expected to come from wind energy and other renewable energy sources, ensuring a sustainable and environmentally friendly approach to fuel production.

Additionally, thermal-energy needs of the plant are expected to be met by renewable natural gas (RNG) sourced from upstream facilities that produce RNG using manure from dairy cattle and livestock.

DOE’s invitation into the due-diligence and term-sheet negotiation process is not an assurance that DOE will issue a loan guarantee, nor that the terms and conditions of a loan guarantee will align with terms proposed by Gevo.

The DOE invitation states, however, that Gevo and its Net-Zero 1 project have the potential to join the DOE’s portfolio of loans.