Immingham to host major sustainable aviation fuel plant in boost for Humber economy

A new sustainable aviation fuel refinery planned for the Port of Immingham is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs and establish the Humber as a key centre for the UK's emerging low-carbon fuels industry.

ETFuels has confirmed that the Associated British Ports (ABP) site in Immingham has been selected for Project King's Road, a major advanced fuels development that will manufacture sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) using renewable e-methanol.

The investment is forecast to support around 500 jobs during construction, with up to 50 permanent roles once the facility becomes operational.

Designed to supply both the UK's aviation fuel network and international export markets, the refinery will benefit from Immingham's established energy infrastructure, including extensive fuel storage facilities, pipeline connections, distribution networks and deep-water port access.

ETFuels said these advantages, combined with the region's skilled industrial workforce, made the Humber the standout location for the project.

Chief Executive Lara Naqushbandi described the development as a significant endorsement of both the Humber and the UK's industrial capabilities.

"Project King's Road represents a major vote of confidence in the Humber and in Britain's industrial future. The Humber is already one of the UK's most important energy and logistics hubs. We believe it can also become the country's leading hub for next-generation fuels production.

"What attracted us to Immingham was the combination of outstanding infrastructure, a highly skilled industrial workforce and direct access to one of the largest fuel distribution networks in the country. Combined with access to some of the world's most competitive renewable fuel feedstocks from our Texas platform, it gives Britain a genuine opportunity to build an advanced fuels industry capable of competing with the best projects anywhere in the world.

"This is about much more than a single facility. It's about creating a new advanced manufacturing capability for Britain, attracting investment into the Humber and establishing a strategic industry that can deliver jobs and growth for decades to come. We named this project after the road it sits on. That's deliberate — we're not building a facility that happens to be in Immingham; we're building something that belongs here."

Associated British Ports believes the project aligns closely with its ambitions to support both UK trade and the country's energy transition.

Andrew Dawes, Regional Director for Humber Ports at ABP, said Immingham's position as Britain's busiest port by tonnage made it ideally suited to host the investment.

"Immingham is already Britain's largest port by tonnage, key to ABP's twin missions of Keeping Britain Trading and Enabling the Energy Transition. Project King's Road is exactly the kind of long-term, high-value industrial partnership that brings these priorities together – one that puts our world-class port infrastructure, deep-water berths and established fuel-handling capabilities to work in safeguarding reliable, resilient energy supplies for the UK, while delivering substantial investment and high-quality jobs.

"We look forward to working closely with ETFuels, Greater Lincolnshire Combined Authority and the wider Humber industrial community to make this project a reality."

The project has also received backing from the Greater Lincolnshire Combined Authority, with Mayor Dame Andrea Jenkyns describing the refinery as the type of investment capable of strengthening the regional economy while positioning the Humber at the forefront of the global transition to cleaner fuels.

"Greater Lincolnshire has always been a region that makes things, moves things and powers the nation. Project King's Road represents exactly the kind of investment we want to attract: innovative, industrial and ambitious. This project has the potential to create high-quality jobs, strengthen our energy sector and place the Humber at the forefront of a new global growth industry."