Vast Renewables, GGS Energy partner on eFuels project in US Southwest

Vast Renewables Ltd., a renewable energy company specializing in concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) systems that generate utility-scale electricity and industrial process heat, announced Oct. 29 it has signed a development services agreement with GGS Energy LLC to pursue a commercial-scale synthetic-fuels project in the Southwest United States called “Project Bravo.”

Project Bravo, Vast’s first deployment in the U.S., will see version 3.0 of Vast’s CSP technology used to generate what the company said is carbon-free heat and electricity to power a co-located refinery that will produce green methanol and/or sustainable aviation fuel (eSAF).

Methanol is one of the most versatile hydrogen derivatives, which, if produced using clean energy, has the potential to decarbonize shipping and aviation fuels.

Using CSP can potentially reduce green-fuel production costs by up to 40 percent according to a recent report by engineering group Fichtner.

Furthermore, eSAF will be critical to reducing emissions from the aviation industry over the coming decades.

Given these and other strong demand trends, the parties expect to attract high-quality, long-term offtake contracts from global strategic partners.

Project Bravo will build on Solar Methanol 1, the CSP-powered green-methanol reference plant to be located in Australia at the Port Augusta Green Energy Hub, that Vast is codeveloping with global energy company Mabanaft.

SM1 will be supplied with baseload renewable heat from Vast’s co-located 30-megawatt/288-megawatt-hour CSP plant, and it will have the capacity to produce 7,500 metric tons of green methanol per year.

Vast said it has been undertaking early-stage development activities for Project Bravo, including initial design, site selection and feasibility assessments to create a viable project ready for the next phase of development in collaboration with GGS Energy.

The project has a development target of 550-megawatt-hours of CSP generation, with further details to be released as development activities unfold.

The development services agreement sets out how Vast will advance Project Bravo with GGS Energy, a subsidiary of Glacier Global Partners that was formed in 2020 as an energy-transition company focused on developing utility-scale renewable energy.

According to Vast, the project’s success could unlock the mass production of green fuels from synthetic feedstocks in the U.S. and catalyze a pipeline of future projects.

“CSP has the potential to unlock low-cost green-fuel production in the U.S., and it can play a significant role in helping decarbonize shipping and aviation,” said Vast CEO Craig Wood. “We are delighted to have GGS Energy as a development partner to advance our plans in the U.S., which is a key market for Vast’s technology.”

Tommy Soriero from GGS Energy said, “GGS Energy is excited to partner with Vast and work to develop Project Bravo. This collaboration marks a significant step toward a sustainable future, harnessing advanced technology to produce low-cost green fuels. We are eager to combine our expertise and resources to ensure the success and impact of future innovative projects starting with Project Bravo.”