Virgin Atlantic’s trans Atlantic flight was NOT the first trans-Atlantic flight fully fuelled by sustainable aviation fuel, nor was it the first long haul flight by a large aircraft fulled by SAF, but the level of publicity it generated has highlighted the absence of a meaningful supply line for SAF.
Willie Walsh, the Glasnevin born CEO of IATA, told the aviation body AGM: “today’s SAF production is less than 0.1pc of what we need for net zero. Airlines used every single drop costing almost $350m. Why are we not moving faster? The willingness of airlines to use SAF is definitely not the issue. Every drop of SAF ever produced has been purchased and used. The problem is insufficient production capacity to meet demand.”
“Governments should be jumping over themselves to be first in line for the job creation, local economic stimulus, and biodiversity protection that SAF production brings—significant benefits for both developed and developing economies alike. Unfortunately, the politicians have not made good on their COP 26 promise to stop financing fossil fuels. We’ve not seen a major shift of fossil fuel subsidies to green energy—certainly not for SAF.”
“The US approach to SAF is the most advanced with a system of tax credits to drive up production levels. This will be more effective than purchase mandates being considered in Singapore, India and Europe. When there is not enough supply, a purchase mandate will drive prices up, stall innovation and limit competition long before supply increases.”
“An early policy decision is needed to establish global standards for a SAF book and claim system that can fairly allocate SAF credits with no double counting.”
“Just as location makes no difference on the impact of CO2 emissions, it has no impact on where SAF is uplifted and used either. A global approach to book and claim for SAF credits will help facilitate economies of scale in SAF production. With the right supportive policies, reaching 30bn litres by 2030 is challenging but achievable. That would be about 6pc of the 450 billion litres annual production capacity we need in 2050.”
