Project Avance demonstrates a scalable, cost‑effective path to advanced biofuels by converting forestry residues into refinery‑ready ARC. The pilot campaign met performance targets, showing scientific and operational progress. By leveraging existing pyrolysis and refinery infrastructure, the approach reduces costs, enhances energy security, and proves abundant biomass can deliver viable low‑carbon fuels.
Some milestones are not about asking new questions. They’re about demonstrating that a real pathway to scale is emerging. That is what Project Avance represents.
Through this collaboration with Bioénergie AE Côte-Nord, supported by Boeing, Alder Renewables is advancing a pathway to convert forestry residues into Alder Renewable Crude (ARC), a refinery-ready intermediate designed for co-processing in existing refinery FCC units to produce sustainable aviation fuel and other transportation fuels.
Our latest pilot campaign marks an important step forward for both Alder, the broader industry, and a more secure domestic energy future. Using commercial fast pyrolysis oil produced from Canadian forest residues, the campaign delivered results aligned with Alder’s performance targets and process modeling in a configuration consistent with the commercial engineering design. In other words, the technology is advancing not only scientifically, but operationally toward deployment.
Project Avance is built around a clear objective: enable one of the lowest-cost pathways to advanced biofuels. The approach is intentionally pragmatic:
· Use abundant forestry residues as feedstock rather than relying on the limited supply of fats, oils, and greases used in HEFA fuels.
· Integrate with existing fast pyrolysis assets, enabling bolt-on deployment instead of capital-intensive greenfield facilities.
· Lower utility intensity by using residual low-grade heat from fast pyrolysis and operating with far lower electrical input than electricity-intensive PtL alternatives.
· Leverage existing refinery infrastructure for finished fuel production, reducing total capital investment and integrating into downstream fuel supply systems.
· Strengthen domestic energy security by converting widely available regional biomass into transportation fuels through existing industrial infrastructure.
These structural advantages are designed to drive cost competitiveness. Independent analysis indicates Alder’s pathway could, at full scale, produce drop-in fuels at lower cost than commercial HEFA pathways derived from waste oils.
Project Avance is helping demonstrate that forestry residues, one of the most abundant renewable resources available, can support scalable, secure, and cost-competitive low-carbon fuels while reinforcing long-term energy security.
We’re grateful to the teams and partners helping move this work forward.
Building momentum with technology validation, strategic partnerships, and new projects
We are proud to announce that Stephen Schueler, former Chief Commercial Officer at A.P. Moller - Maersk, has joined the company as a Strategic Advisor and Shareholder. Stephen currently serves as Managing Director, Green Transition, Investment Advisory Board at European Maritime Finance, focusing on sustainable shipping investment strategies. He is on multiple leading global boards as a shareholder and trusted advisor.
Alder Renewables, BASF, National Laboratory of the Rockies, and North Atlantic Refining co-authored a new Hydrocarbon Processing article on coprocessing Alder Renewable Crude in fluid catalytic crackers. The work highlights a practical pathway to produce renewable fuels with existing refinery assets, improved handling, better storage stability, strong yields, and biogenic carbon integration for today’s energy infrastructure at commercial scale globally.
Project Avance demonstrates a scalable, cost‑effective path to advanced biofuels by converting forestry residues into refinery‑ready ARC. The pilot campaign met performance targets, showing scientific and operational progress. By leveraging existing pyrolysis and refinery infrastructure, the approach reduces costs, enhances energy security, and proves abundant biomass can deliver viable low‑carbon fuels.
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