American EcoFuels Inc. (OTC: AEFI) Appoints Veteran Engineering Executive Jeff Saxinger as Chief Technology Officer
New CTO and reorganized engineering roles are intended to support American EcoFuels’ shift from experimental GTL/CTL work toward SAF testing and qualification.
Rhea-AI Summary
American EcoFuels (AEFI) appointed veteran engineering executive Jeff Saxinger as Chief Technology Officer on September 22, 2026, to lead development of its proprietary Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) and Coal-to-Liquids (CTL) fuel technologies.
Saxinger, a Professional Engineer with more than 32 years of experience, has led multidisciplinary teams across preliminary engineering, FEED, detailed engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning for gas-processing, fractionation and hydrogen-generation projects. He will support American EcoFuels’ push to produce synthetic aviation fuel (SAF) for ASTM testing and qualification aimed at commercial airlines, aircraft and engine manufacturers, fuel distributors and U.S. military customers. In parallel, Senior Electrical Engineer Travis Yakimishyn will focus more directly on electrical and technical solutions as the company builds an integrated engineering organization from experimental work toward eventual commercial-scale deployment.
Positive
- Appointment of CTO adds 32+ years of engineering and project-management experience to lead GTL and CTL technology development
- Refocused engineering leadership with a dedicated Senior Electrical Engineer role supports system design, integration and testing
- Defined SAF pathway targeting ASTM qualification and potential offtake talks with airlines, OEMs, fuel suppliers and U.S. military programs
Negative
- None.
News Explained
The SAF program is still described as moving from engineering and experimental work toward fuel production and testing, and the commercial path remains prospective: potential offtake agreements would require successful negotiation, while customer use remains subject to ASTM, regulatory and customer approvals.
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
Company Strengthens Engineering Leadership as SAF Production and Testing Program Moves Forward; Planned ASTM Testing and Qualification Activities Intended to Support Future Airline, Aircraft, Engine and U.S. Military Customers
SOUTHLAKE, Texas, Sept. 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- American EcoFuels Inc. (OTC: AEFI) (“American EcoFuels” or the “Company”), a developer of advanced synthetic fuel technologies, today announced the appointment of Jeff Saxinger as Chief Technology Officer (CTO), strengthening the Company’s technical and engineering leadership as it advances the development, construction and testing of its proprietary Gas-to-Liquids (“GTL”) and Coal-to-Liquids (“CTL”) technologies and prepares to produce aviation fuel for testing and qualification.
Saxinger, a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.), brings more than 32 years of engineering and project-management experience, including 13 years in shop fabrication engineering. His background encompasses mechanical, process, electrical and instrumentation disciplines, as well as extensive experience with compressors, turboexpanders, pumps and modular process systems. He has led multidisciplinary teams through preliminary engineering, front-end engineering and design (“FEED”), detailed engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning.
His experience also includes the engineering of gas-processing plants involving separation, compression, amine sweetening, refrigeration, glycol dehydration, CO₂ removal, liquids fractionation, steam and hot-oil systems, and waste-heat recovery.
“Jeff is a great addition to our team and to American EcoFuels at an important point in the Company’s development, as our engineering effort for producing SAF for testing is starting now,” said Brent Nelson, Executive Chairman of American EcoFuels. “Jeff brings decades of practical engineering, fabrication, project-management and gas-processing experience. We believe that experience will be extremely valuable as we move our technology from engineering and development into physical systems capable of producing fuels for testing.”
Nelson continued, “Our objective is not simply to demonstrate that we can produce a synthetic aviation fuel. We intend to undertake the applicable ASTM testing and qualification pathway for our aviation fuels, with the goal of developing fuels capable of being accepted for their intended applications by commercial airlines, aircraft and engine manufacturers, and appropriate branches and programs of the U.S. military. As that technical and qualification work advances, one of our commercial objectives is to begin developing and pursuing potential offtake agreements with these categories of customers.”
Extensive Process and Project Engineering Experience
Saxinger’s experience is particularly relevant to American EcoFuels’ planned development program. His recent work includes serving as project manager on a multidisciplinary team designing and building a major greenfield sour-gas processing plant with sulfur recovery and serving as Project Engineering Manager for the refurbishment of a steam methane reformer hydrogen-generation plant used to supply a diesel desulfurization process.
Earlier in his career, Saxinger managed and engineered major gas-processing, compression, fractionation, pumping and related infrastructure projects. His experience includes a 33,000-barrel-per-day C2+ fractionation train FEED project, gas compressor stations, liquids-handling facilities and sour-gas processing plants.
Saxinger also has extensive fabrication-shop and field experience involving high-pressure compressor systems, CO₂ injection systems, process equipment, piping, pumps, valves and instrumentation. His technical background includes work with API and ASME engineering standards relevant to petroleum, petrochemical and natural-gas processing equipment.
Saxinger earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan and has completed additional university-level coursework in natural-gas processing as well as specialized training involving underground gas storage, acid-gas compression and injection, reciprocating compressors and ASME piping codes. He is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta and the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan.
Leadership and Engineering Update
As American EcoFuels accelerates its proprietary GTL and CTL development and testing program, Travis Yakimishyn is assuming the role of Senior Electrical Engineer, allowing him to take an even more hands-on role in the Company’s engineering activities.
In this position, Yakimishyn will focus his experience directly on the design, development, testing and advancement of electrical and technical solutions supporting the American EcoFuels GTL and CTL platforms. The Company believes this increased engineering focus will further strengthen the technical team as American EcoFuels progresses from its current experimental program toward increasingly advanced systems.
With Saxinger serving as Chief Technology Officer and Yakimishyn assuming a more focused and hands-on engineering role, the Company intends to build an integrated engineering organization capable of supporting process engineering, system integration, fabrication, commissioning, fuel production, testing and eventual commercial-scale deployment.
From Engineering to Fuel Qualification and Commercial Offtake
American EcoFuels is developing proprietary GTL and CTL processes designed to convert carbon-containing feedstocks into synthesis gas and subsequently into synthetic hydrocarbons through catalytic conversion and downstream upgrading.
The Company’s current development strategy is designed to progress from engineering and experimental work toward the production of sufficient quantities of aviation fuel for laboratory evaluation and subsequent qualification activities.
American EcoFuels intends to pursue the applicable ASTM International qualification and specification pathway required for its particular synthetic aviation-fuel pathway. The Company expects this process to involve extensive analytical testing and evaluation of fuel properties and performance. Any ultimate use of the Company’s fuels by commercial or military customers would remain subject to the applicable ASTM specifications, regulatory requirements, customer approvals and, where relevant, military fuel specifications and qualification procedures.
The Company believes successful progression through this process could provide the technical foundation for discussions with:
- Commercial airlines and aviation-fuel purchasers;
- Aircraft manufacturers;
- Commercial and military aircraft-engine manufacturers;
- Fuel distributors and suppliers; and
- U.S. Department of Defense and individual military-service procurement programs.
In parallel with its engineering and fuel-testing program, American EcoFuels intends to pursue discussions regarding potential long-term fuel offtake agreements. Such agreements, if successfully negotiated, could provide future commercial facilities with contracted demand and assist the Company in planning production capacity and project financing.
About American EcoFuels Inc.
American EcoFuels Inc. (OTC: AEFI) is developing advanced synthetic fuel technologies intended to convert natural gas and coal-derived feedstocks into high-performance liquid hydrocarbons, including Sustainable Aviation Fuel, synthetic paraffinic kerosene, modified clean diesel and related engineered fuels.
Through its GTL and CTL technology platforms, proprietary catalysts and expanding intellectual property portfolio, American EcoFuels is working toward fuels designed to provide the high energy density required by aviation, transportation, defense and industrial applications while utilizing existing engines and fuel infrastructure where applicable and following required testing and certification.
The Company’s development strategy encompasses technology engineering, intellectual property development, test-plant operation, fuel testing and certification, strategic partnerships, potential commercial production projects and prospective technology licensing.
American EcoFuels - From Discovering Energy to Engineering It.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains statements regarding future events, expectations, plans, objectives and potential outcomes that are forward-looking in nature and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. These statements include, among others, statements concerning the anticipated contributions of the Company’s Chief Technology Officer and engineering personnel; the development, testing, qualification, financing and commercialization of the Company’s technologies; production of aviation fuel for testing; ASTM qualification and specification activities; regulatory, military or customer acceptance; expansion of the Company’s intellectual property portfolio; potential strategic partnerships, offtake arrangements, production facilities and licensing opportunities; and the Company’s ability to execute its business plan.
Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations, estimates, assumptions and projections and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, developments or events to differ materially from those anticipated. There can be no assurance that the Company’s technologies will achieve expected performance, that its fuels will successfully complete applicable testing or qualification processes or obtain required certifications, that ASTM specifications or other regulatory or customer requirements will be satisfied, that airlines, aircraft or engine manufacturers, the U.S. Department of Defense or any branch of the U.S. military will approve, purchase or use the Company’s fuels, or that the Company will successfully finance, scale or commercialize its technologies. Additional risks include engineering and scale-up risks, intellectual property challenges, financing requirements, regulatory developments, feedstock availability and pricing, competition, market acceptance, environmental requirements and general economic conditions.
Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and American EcoFuels undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise such statements except as required by applicable law.
Company Contact
American EcoFuels Inc.
OTC: AEFI
Phone: 877.233.4485 ext. 730
Email: info@americanecofuelsinc.com
Website: www.americanecofuelsinc.com
FAQ
AI-generated questions and answers. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
What will Jeff Saxinger focus on as Chief Technology Officer at American EcoFuels?
As CTO, Jeff Saxinger is expected to lead the technical and engineering effort as American EcoFuels advances development, construction and testing of its GTL and CTL technologies and begins producing aviation fuel for laboratory evaluation and qualification. The company said his background in gas-processing plants, fractionation, compression and modular process systems is intended to help move its technology from engineering and development into physical systems capable of producing fuels for testing.
How is Travis Yakimishyn’s role changing within American EcoFuels’ engineering team?
Travis Yakimishyn is assuming the role of Senior Electrical Engineer, enabling a more hands-on focus on the design, development, testing and advancement of electrical and technical solutions that support the GTL and CTL platforms. This role shift is intended to increase direct engineering focus as the company progresses from its experimental program to more advanced systems.
What SAF testing and qualification process does American EcoFuels plan to follow?
American EcoFuels intends to pursue the applicable ASTM International qualification and specification pathway for its synthetic aviation-fuel route. The company expects this to involve extensive analytical testing and evaluation of fuel properties and performance, with any ultimate commercial or military use remaining subject to ASTM specifications, regulatory requirements, customer approvals and, where relevant, military fuel specifications and qualification procedures.
Which potential customers does American EcoFuels aim to engage after fuel qualification?
The company believes successful progression through testing and qualification could support discussions with commercial airlines and aviation-fuel purchasers, aircraft manufacturers, commercial and military aircraft-engine manufacturers, fuel distributors and suppliers, and U.S. Department of Defense and individual military-service procurement programs. In parallel, it intends to explore potential long-term fuel offtake agreements.