ARC Bio, a Canadian joint venture between an affiliate of Bioénergie AE Côte-Nord (Bioénergie AECN) and Alder Renewables, has demonstrated a pathway to produce sustainable aviation fuel from Canadian forest residues through refinery co-processing. The campaign produced barrel-scale quantities of Alder Renewable Crude (ARC), a transportable biocrude, and generated a SAF blend that met key ASTM D1655 fuel-property specifications evaluated in the screening.
How the Conversion Chain Actually Works
The process began with fast pyrolysis oil produced from Canadian forest residues at Bioénergie AECN's existing Port-Cartier plant, upgraded into barrel-scale ARC biocrude. That biocrude was then processed in a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) pilot unit designed to simulate commercial refinery operation, producing a jet-range fuel fraction. Carbon-14 analysis of the resulting fuel confirmed the presence of biogenic carbon traceable to the wood-residue-derived feedstock. The jet-range fraction was isolated and evaluated for blending compatibility with HEFA-based SAF made from fats, oils and greases, with the resulting blend meeting the specifications tested.
Why Refinery Co-Processing Is the Specific Bet Being Made Here
ARC Bio's core proposition rests on using fluid catalytic cracking units already operating at commercial scale in refineries worldwide, rather than building a standalone dedicated facility to convert forest residues into fuel. Alder Renewables CEO Derek Vardon framed the demonstration's significance specifically in those terms: not simply that a renewable jet-range fuel was produced, but that a pathway now connects Canadian forest residues with refinery infrastructure already operating commercially, creating what he described as a scalable, capital-efficient route into aviation fuel markets, avoiding the capital cost of new standalone refining capacity that other SAF feedstock pathways typically require.
The Project This Demonstration Builds Toward
This work was financially supported by Boeing and sits within ARC Bio's broader Project Avance initiative, a partnership between Alder Renewables, Boeing Canada and Bioénergie AECN first announced in May 2025, aimed at producing SAF from sawmill residues at the same Port-Cartier site, with Boeing's involvement structured as part of its Industrial and Technological Benefits commitment to Canada. Project Avance's own stated production target is 2027, and the project has previously stated it reduces greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80% compared with conventional jet fuel, though that figure describes the broader project's own stated target rather than a result confirmed specifically by this FCC co-processing demonstration.
Why Canada's Forest Sector Specifically
Bioénergie AECN president Serge Mercier framed the demonstration around connecting an existing domestic resource with existing industrial capability: Canada's forest sector generates substantial volumes of woody residue, and as traditional markets for that material face changing demand and trade pressures, converting it into an energy-dense, transportable biocrude creates new higher-value uses for residues that might otherwise have limited markets, including potentially low-value biomass from forest management and wildfire-risk reduction activities, where appropriate feedstock supply chains can be established.
What Remains Ahead
ARC Bio states its next programme stage will generate additional refinery-relevant data to support commercial-scale trials, with its longer-term roadmap aimed at a first-of-a-kind Canadian commercial project integrating forest-residue conversion, biocrude production and refinery integration. No specific commercial-scale facility capacity, construction timeline, or confirmed named refinery partner for co-processing at commercial volumes has been disclosed beyond the pilot-scale FCC testing already completed.
Source: ARC Bio, 30 September 2026.
