Top industry official offers blueprint for wider adoption of sustainable aviation fuel

Adoption of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) can be quickened through government action and the rollout of a global framework allowing carriers to buy the fuel from anywhere in the world, a senior official with the global trade body of world airlines has advocated.

“Yes, SAF’s usage can be accelerated but for that governments need to act. It’s an energy transition. If they want more companies to invest in SAF, they need to provide them with some form of incentive. That’s why have favoured the scheme implemented by the US, where producers have been asked to align SAF deliveries to a system of tax credits,” senior vice president for environment & sustainability at the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Sebastian Mikosz, told Business Today recently.

Mikosz added that these incentives, similar to subsidies being extended by world governments for enhanced use of electric cars and solar panels, would also help make the fuel more cost-competitive.

Airlines see SAF as a key element in their commitment to achieving net zero CO2 emissions by 2050. IATA, which represents some 300 airlines comprising 83 per cent of global air traffic, estimates SAF to alone account for 65 per cent of the decarbonisation target, requiring a production capacity of 450 billion litres by that year.

“SAF is going to be produced worldwide with different intensities. You will have countries with more supply and others with less supply. Therefore, why not create a simple ‘book and claim’ system so that an airline can buy SAF wherever it’s available? It doesn’t have to be brought to the airport where the airline flies, so it’s disconnected from physical delivery,” said Mikosz.

IATA has even proposed this in a presentation to the UN agency, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). Mikosz hoped that if ICAO made a global recommendation, governments could easily consider it as a standard for implementation. Governments have already agreed to a Long Term Aspirational Goal (LTAG) through decarbonisation of the aviation industry at the 41st assembly of ICAO in October 2022.

Production picking-up traction

Although SAF is currently 2.5 times more expensive compared to conventional fuel, Mikosz saw its usage gaining traction with more producers entering the market.

“There will be a moment by 2035-40 when we will be able to dramatically increase the usage of SAF because its price will be similar to using conventional fuel,” he averred.

IATA estimates SAF production to reach at least 300 million litres in 2022, a 200 per cent increase on 2021 production of 100 million litres. More bullish estimates see total production touching 450 million litres this year. With the right policy support, production may reach 30 billion litres by 2030.

To date, over 4.5 lakh commercial flights have been operated using SAF, with 40 airlines inking offtake agreements with producers this year. Indian carriers IndiGo and Tata group-owned Air India, Vistara and AirAsia India have entered into MoUs with the Council Of Scientific And Industrial Research-Indian Institute Of Petroleum (CSIR-IIP) for SAF research, development and deployment.

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