Enzyme producer Novozymes is launching a fuel enzyme targeting diesel and aviation fuel, SAF.

The enzyme is called ”Quara LowP” and is an enzyme solution designed to transform the pre-treatment process, according to the announcement.

By 2030, vegetable oils are expected to make up around 40% of the raw material for the production of sustainable diesel and jet fuel. And the new enzyme will ensure that the customers - the farmers - both make the bottom line, Novozymes says.

”This innovation is a testament to our commitment to sustainable solutions for the renewable diesel and SAF industry,” says Hans Ole Klingenberg, VP Marketing, Ag & Industrial Biosolutions.

The purpose of the enzyme is to increase fuel efficiency and reduce environmental impact, it adds.

Novozymes has for several years supplied enzymes for the production of bioethanol, where the enzyme company has worked to enable customers to both increase yields in their ethanol production - and more importantly get more value from the by-products - both oils and proteins - that producers can sell and thus increase the total value creation from the production when making bioethanol.

At the same time, work is underway to make second-generation bioethanol commercially viable for customers. Second-generation bioethanol is produced from residual and waste products, while first-generation biofuels are produced from crops directly from the fields, such as cereals, corn, sugar beets and cane, and rapeseed.

In connection with the third-quarter results presented at the end of October, CFO Lars Green said that in the longer term, bioethanol could be the basic ingredient in aviation fuel.

”If we look a few years into the future, it could also be a possibility. So we actually think it’s an area that looks really exciting,” he told MarketWire at the time.