Natixis joins United Airlines as corporate partner with investments in expansion of SAF
Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking announced its investment in the United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund - the first of its kind venture fund focused on funding startups dedicated to scaleup of SAF production through advancing technology and sustainable feedstock development. Natixis CIB joins a group of 22 investors consisting of industry leaders across the aviation value chain including OEMs, airlines, fuel producers, technology and engineering specialists, banks, aircraft lessors and travel management.
“Our commitment to sustainability and decarbonization, and deep expertise and presence in both Aviation and Energy Transition sectors position Natixis CIB particularly well to support SAF development and partner with United and other investors in supporting the Fund’s portfolio companies in their quest to decarbonize aviation”, said Mohamed Kallala, Global Head of Natixis Corporate and Investment Banking.
“We are proud to be a part of this endeavor,” said Yevgeniya Levitin, Managing Director and Head of Aviation Americas at Natixis CIB. “SAF has emerged as the most effective large-scale solution for decarbonizing aviation industry, and the demand for it, fueled by net zero objectives and strong traffic growth, outstrips supply by a huge factor. Natixis CIB is fully aligned with United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund’s approach to addressing the bottlenecks to scaling up production and advancing SAF enabling technologies.”
SAF is a “drop-in” fuel that is chemically equivalent to conventional jet fuel but is produced from non-petroleum-based renewable feedstock, resulting in significant reduction of greenhouse gas emissions on a lifecycle basis.
“SAF is the best tool we have to decarbonize airplanes, but we don’t have enough of it. To create the fuel supply we need for our fleet, United recognized that we would have to help build a brand-new industry from scratch – like wind and solar in previous decades,” said Andrew Chang, Managing Director of United Airlines Ventures. “As part of our effort to build a new sustainable aviation ecosystem, we recruited a group of partners with the industry expertise to support our startups with both financial and strategic capital, to help them navigate the entire process from conception to commercialization.”
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