AAL American Airlines Group Inc

American Airlines announced today that it has retained Ocean Park, a boutique investment bank with expertise in the renewable fuels industry, to assist with evaluating alternative jet fuels and identifying the most promising companies and technologies.

American recognizes the need to make jet fuel – the most important component of its supply chain – more sustainable. The airline is encouraged by the pace of developments within the renewable jet fuel industry and is seeking opportunities to make binding commitments to reliably source fuel that meets specifications and is priced at or near market prices for traditional jet fuel. American’s engagement with Ocean Park will build on the airline’s longstanding work to advance renewable jet fuels through the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI) and Airlines for America (A4A).

“As the world’s largest airline and the largest global user of jet fuel, we are committed to sustainability and reducing our carbon footprint,” said Michael Baer, Managing Director of Fuel and Energy Management at American Airlines. “This is the right time to undertake a comprehensive review of the renewable jet fuel sector. We look forward to working with Ocean Park to leverage its industry relationships and understanding of this emerging industry.”

Ocean Park will engage with key entities in the advanced biofuels and renewable jet fuel sectors to assist American in further developing its renewable jet fuel strategy and identifying specific opportunities. A key focus of Ocean Park’s effort will be commercialization timelines for alternative pathways to the production of renewable jet fuel. Ocean Park’s efforts will help accelerate American’s desire to positively impact the overall renewable jet fuel industry’s growth and development.

“We are pleased to assist American in this important initiative,” said Bruce Comer, Managing Director at Ocean Park. “For almost 30 years, Ocean Park’s principals have played a role in developing the biofuels industry. We look forward to contributing to the growth of the renewable jet fuel industry and helping to build a winning strategy for American.”

American is part of the global aviation coalition supporting the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) goal for international aviation to achieve carbon-neutral growth from 2020 onward. Delivering on this goal will require advances in technology, operations and infrastructure, the cooperation of a range of stakeholders, and supporting ICAO standards and policies. The development and deployment of cost-competitive, renewable jet fuels will help the global industry achieve carbon-neutral growth while enhancing energy security.

About American Airlines GroupAmerican Airlines and American Eagle offer an average of nearly 6,700 flights per day to nearly 350 destinations in more than 50 countries. American has hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. American is a founding member of the oneworld® alliance, whose members serve more than 1,000 destinations with about 14,250 daily flights to over 150 countries. Shares of American Airlines Group Inc. trade on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol AAL. In 2015, its stock joined the S&P 500 index. Connect with American on Twitter @AmericanAir and at Facebook.com/AmericanAirlines.

About Ocean ParkOcean Park is a boutique investment bank that provides mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, financial advisory, restructuring and consulting services with extensive experience in the renewable energy, cleantech, food and agribusiness industries. Ocean Park has completed 21 renewable fuels M&A transactions totaling 500+ MPGY and worth more than $400M since 2006.  Any securities are offered through Ocean Park Securities, LLC, a member of FINRA and SIPC. Ocean Park’s professionals are licensed registered representatives of Ocean Park Securities, LLC.  For more information, please visit www.oceanparkadvisors.com.

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