Houston-based HIF Global has selected a 540-acre site outside Bay City, Texas, for a $6 billion e-fuels facility that plans to recycle carbon dioxide into transportation fuels.
HIF Global, in partnership with Texas Governor Greg Abbott, the Matagorda County Economic Development Corporation, and various community partners, announced its selection of Matagorda County as the location of its first industrial-scale e-fuels facility in North America.
When the HIF Matagorda e-fuels facility is fully operational, HIF anticipates producing approximately 200 million gallons a year of a carbon-neutral gasoline substitute that will decarbonize over 400,000 vehicles in the United States.
HIF stated in a release it plans to create approximately 3,000 direct jobs during the construction phase of the HIF Matagorda e-fuels facility and more than 125 permanent operating jobs. The project is also expected to create and sustain thousands of direct and indirect jobs in the region. The company expects construction at the site to begin in 2023.
The carbon-neutral gasoline substitute can be used in vehicles without any modification to existing engines or the infrastructure on which they depend. The carbon-neutral gasoline is produced by combining CO2 captured from the atmosphere with green hydrogen from renewable wind power.
"I am grateful to the citizens of Matagorda County for welcoming the first American e-fuels facility to the south coast of Texas," said HIF USA CEO Renato Pereira . "We are honored that Governor Abbott could be at this site announcement, demonstrating the commitment the state of Texas has to innovative businesses that will drive the future. Once again Texas has shown its leadership as the heart of America's energy sector, galvanizing new energy supplies for the United States and the world."
Pereira said the site was chosen because of its unique combination of incentive support, available real estate, tax and regulatory stability, and commitment to protecting the environment through responsible and sustainable economic development.
Carbon-neutral e-fuels represent the energy sector's next frontier, enabling renewable resources to fuel our mobile economy. We expect to start construction in 2023 and produce eFuels from the pioneering HIF Matagorda eFuels facility in 2026," he added.
“This is a tremendous investment for the future of Matagorda County,” said Gov. Greg Abbott. “HIF Global is a leader in the future of e-fuels, and is a fantastic business to establish right here in Texas.”
