In Great Falls, Montana, waste products like used cooking oil and animal fats are being turned into something unexpected: fuel for airplanes. At Montana Renewables, the country’s largest producer of sustainable aviation fuel, up to 15,000 barrels a day are processed into cleaner-burning fuel that makes its way from the refinery to airports along the West Coast. Rail plays a major role in that journey, moving both the raw materials in and the finished fuel out.
Together with BNSF, Montana Renewables currently produces enough sustainable aviation fuel to fill about 1,825 railcars each year (more than 53 million gallons). That’s one step toward the 3‑billion‑gallon mark set for 2030. For travelers, it means the possibility of lower‑emission flights in the years ahead, powered by an unlikely source.
“There are many players involved in this game-changing energy source, but it’s one that, working together, we believe can bring a brighter, cleaner future,” said Angela Caddell, BNSF’s Group Vice President of Agricultural Products.
