The very nascent sustainable aviation fuels – SAF industry is still dealing with a lot of policy and market development issues around the world.
Delegates at the recent annual Hydrogen UK conference heard that the SAF mandate by the UK could as well boost hydrogen production, but present stacking rules make it easier to import hydrogen.
The rule says that by 2030, 10% of the jet fuel sold in the UK must be sustainable, with fewer targets for fuels made from green hydrogen.
But rules against double stacking incentives, which means getting more than one subsidy for the same unit of fuel or hydrogen, can rather enable producers to look for feedstocks from other countries.
Any kind of trade defense measures that restrict the supply of SAF or drive up its cost by means of tariffs could also slow down the use of SAF, even if there are legal mandates that are in place.
Across geographies, steps have been taken to boost domestic SAF production.
EcoCeres, a company that makes renewable fuels, recently asked the European policymakers as well as aviation stakeholders to keep the EU SAF market accessible. They also warned that any trade defense measures on imported SAF could hurt the climate goals of the UK, make it less fair, and turn the supply even tighter.
Building up the SAF capacity is still a challenge that people all over the world happen to be working on.
Brazil is looking to be a leader in SAF as it has a lot of farms. It also possesses immense know-how about biofuels and has made tremendous progress in passing laws.
However, Brazilian airlines are worried that there is not going to be enough SAF available in 2027 in order to meet the 1% CO2 reduction needs, especially at prices that are reasonable.
It is well to be noted that it costs about three or four times as much as regular jet fuel to bring SAF into Brazil; hence, the airlines can’t do that. The dearth when it comes to refining capacity is a further issue.
Last summer, Syzygy Plasmonics, a Houston-based tech company, said it had made an advancement when it comes to SAF with Honeywell UOP. Recently, it collaborated with Geo bio gas&carbon, which is Brazil’s developer of biogas from sugarcane as well as ethanol waste, in an attempt to bridge the gap and also create commercial-scale SAF projects in Brazil.
The fact is that the initial efforts will focus on sites that can produce almost 100,000 metric tonnes per year. The final total scale is anticipated to be over 525,000 metric tonnes per year.
Syzygy happens to have quite akin partnerships in the US, the Dominican Republic, as well as Mexico as it tries to free up what it says are stranded biogas resources.
The CEO of Syzygy Plasmonics, Trevor Best, said that, “The aviation industry’s path to net-zero depends on our ability to transform diverse, often overlooked feedstocks into high-value fuel at an industrial scale.”
Australia is also looking to build up its own SAF industry. Sydney Airport has paid for new research demonstrating a lot of support from the public. Australians see the chance to generate jobs across their regions, help farmers, and even keep more of the natural resources and manufacturing capability of Australia at home.
The fact is that Australia already grows a lot of the raw materials that are needed to make SAF, such as crops and leftovers from cooking, as well as household waste. Yet, a lot of this material gets sent to other countries in order to be turned into fuel.
The CEO of Sydney Airport, Scott Charlton, said that Australia has an excellent chance to create a new regional industry that is centered around SAF.
He says, “Locally producing SAF would reduce aviation emissions while creating jobs, supporting farmers, and strengthening Australia’s fuel security, and we continue to advocate for demand measures as part of the Australian government’s $1.1 billion investment in low-carbon liquid fuels.” Charlton further adds, “The current conflict in the Middle East highlights the importance of mandates that attract global investment and secure a domestic fuel supply. Globally, SAF mandates are accelerating, and Australia must implement measures to boost domestic SAF production, using feedstock that would otherwise be exported.”