Southwest Airlines Announces Investment in LanzaJet, Inc.

LanzaJet recently opened LanzaJet Freedom Pines Fuels, the world’s first commercial-scale ethanol-to-SAF plant in Soperton, Georgia, and its investors include British Airways, LanzaTech, Mitsui & Co., Shell,  Suncor Energy, and other funders such as Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, Breakthrough Energy and Al Nippon Airways.

As part of the agreement, LanzaJet and Southwest intend to work toward the development of a SAF production facility and collaborate to advance the operations of a corn stover to ethanol technology company in which Southwest is invested: SAFFiRE Renewables, LLC.

The Vinson & Elkins corporate team was led by partner Chris Rowley, with assistance from senior associate John Sager and associates Tessa Krieger-Carlisle and Micah Tardy. Other key team members were partner Alan Alexander; partner Wes Jones; partner David Peck and senior associate Lauren Meyers; partner Michael Kurzer and associate Haley Titcomb; and counsels Brian Howard and Elizabeth McIntyre.