An Oxford University spin-out based at Oxford Airport that is developing a one-step way to turn waste carbon into sustainable aviation fuel.
OXCCU is developing a way to make sustainable aviation fuel from waste carbon. Its process uses a patented iron-based catalyst to turn carbon dioxide and hydrogen into jet-fuel-range hydrocarbons in a single step. The company says skipping the usual extra steps lowers production costs and the fuel's carbon footprint. Aviation is its first focus, though it says the same technology could also make chemicals and plastics. This matters because the UK SAF mandate and the EU's RefuelEU Aviation rules push airlines towards sustainable fuel, yet conventional jet fuel is still much cheaper, so lowering the cost of SAF is the central challenge the company describes.
OXCCU states its aim as to "develop the world's lowest cost, lowest emission pathways to make SAF from waste carbon". It wants flying and everyday products to keep working while having a smaller climate impact. Chief executive Andrew Symes has said "the serious lever is SAF. The challenge is SAF cost", which is the problem the company says it is working on.
OXCCU is based at Oxford Airport, in Hangar 15 on Langford Lane, Oxford. Its first demonstration plant, called OX1, is on that site and was commissioned in September 2024. A second plant, OX2, was described in 2025 as being built and due to run in 2026. The company was spun out of the University of Oxford in 2021, and a 2025 article shows it was still active then, with airline and aerospace groups, including International Airlines Group, named among its supporters. IAG has said it aims to meet 10% of its fuel needs with SAF by 2030. Coverage in June 2023 and July 2025 also shows the company discussing its process and costs publicly, and its website mentions a visit by His Majesty The King (undated).
The company was co-founded by Andrew Symes and Jane Jin, together with academic founders Professor Peter Edwards, Dr Tiancun Xiao and Dr Benzhen Yao. A recent article says it hired Nacho Gimenez, who used to be a managing director at BP Ventures. We did not find a headcount, a values page or any description of working culture, so we cannot say more about what day-to-day life is like there.
We did not find a graduate scheme, internship or apprenticeship. The company's website invites people to join through a vacancies section on its contact page but lists no specific roles. A plant, chemistry and engineering business like this tends to need chemists, engineers and technicians, so look at its vacancies page and consider contacting it about work experience or a lab placement.
Website: www.oxccu.com
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