Sustainable fuels company celebrates moving from demo to manufacturing

Velocys plc the Oxford-based sustainable fuels technology company, which earlier this week announced that it had completed the manufacturing and delivery of four reactors to Red Rock Biofuels in Oregon, USA, has revealed its final results for 2019.

Highlights for the year included raising a total of £28 million in June and July, and securing £0.5m of grant funding for its Altalto waste-to-fuels project from the Department for Transport (DfT), under the Future Fuels for Flight and Freight Competition (F4C). The project had previously secured a further £1 million funding from British Airways PLC and Shell International Petroleum Company Limited.

Velocys reported reduced revenues of £0.3 million (2018: £0.7m) and an operating loss of £9.6 million, down from £18.6 million in 2018, but a significant reduction in its administrative expenses.

Henrik Wareborn, CEO of Velocys, said: “In 2019, we moved forward from demonstrating our technology in 2018 to manufacturing and delivery of reactors, catalysts and engineering services to our clients Red Rock Biofuels and Toyo Engineering. Velocys is on track to create significant value as a technology enabler of advanced sustainable fuels.

“2019 saw the emergence of a powerful global voice advocating the importance of tackling the sources of climate change and air-quality deterioration with immediate concrete solutions. Pressure mounted on governments, industry and individuals to take action. Heavy transportation, especially aviation, remains one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise. The drive for decarbonisation, including net zero targets, has gained strong momentum requiring industry and fuel providers to invest significantly in carbon emissions reductions technology. We are ideally placed with our commercially demonstrated technology and business model to accelerate the supply of Sustainable Aviation Fuels."

In December 2019, the company welcomed new Chairman, Philip Holland.