[REVISION HISTORY]

European sustainable aviation fuel development

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2026-10-22 22:23 UTC → 2026-10-25 20:31 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The European Union continues to expand its sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) capacity, driven by regulatory mandates and technological innovation. In 2025, SAF supply in the EU reached 1.1 million tonnes, accounting for 2.8% of the 39.3 million tonnes of total aviation fuel supplied across EU airports. This volume surpassed the 2% mandatory quota established by the ReFuelEU Aviation regulation. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) reported that SAF availability expanded from 33 airports in 2024 to 121 airports in 2025, helping to avoid an estimated 3.33 to 3.77 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. Recent developments highlight a shift toward advanced production technologies and infrastructure. Shell, Fraunhofer IKTS, and AVL have launched a four-year partnership to develop a next-generation power-to-liquids (PTL) process for synthetic e-SAF. Additionally, SkyNRG is developing Europe’s first dedicated greenfield SAF production plant in the Netherlands, expected to be operational by 2028. At the operational level, Brussels Airport is testing a mobile blending plant to allow airlines to exceed minimum SAF requirements through customized fuel blends. While used cooking oil remains the primary feedstock (80%), the industry is exploring new sources, such as sunflower cultivation in Romania. However, economic challenges persist; SAF costs remain two to three times higher than conventional ~~kerosene,~~ kerosene. To address this, a joint study by IATA, Airbus, and ~~while~~ Accenture suggests that corporate ~~travel~~ demand could support ~~up to~~ between 1.0 million and 1.9 million tonnes of SAF annually by 2030, ~~global production remains~~ up from approximately 323,000 tonnes in 2024. The study proposes a ~~small fraction of total consumption. Volatile jet fuel prices, driven by geopolitical instability, are increasingly transitioning~~ ‘book-and-claim’ model using SAF ~~from an environmental measure~~ Environmental Attribute Certificates (EAc), which allows companies to ~~a strategic economic necessity.~~ fund verified emissions reductions without requiring physical fuel delivery to specific flight paths. Meanwhile, Lufthansa Group has rebranded its ‘Green Fares’ to ‘Impact Fare’ to comply with stricter EU anti-greenwashing regulations regarding environmental claims.

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